A Troublesome Chance
by Waffles43
Summary: Shikamaru watched as Obito completed the infinite tsukuyomi, but finds himself stuck in the past with an oppertunity to change the future. Is his silent wish granted, or is this just an illusion of the genjutsu? Slight AU. Time Travel. Pairing for Shika is undecided. Obviously Shika-centric.
1. Chapter 1

**A Troublesome Chance**

**Disclaimer- I only own my imagination**

**Prologue- Troublesome Restart**

* * *

Shikamaru was on his knees, panting along with a good amount of the allied shinobi force_._ He didn't have any clue on why Orochimaru was there with the Edo-Tensei'd Hokages, but he was thankful for more unbeatable powerhouses to destroy the insanely powerful Obito. After getting up again, Naruto faced Obito.

"Why don't you submit? It's futile, as in three minutes the world will be under my genjutsu." The young Nara's eyes widened. He began thinking up strategies to help prevent the end of the world that his father had recently sacrificed his life for, though found nothing feasible. _There's nothing we can do, is there? Is this what it feels like to lose hope?_ He slumped forward, leaning his face towards the ground as sweat dripped off his forehead.

Naruto struggled at the front of the battlefield and forced his shaking legs under himself. Standing up with the only other people on their feet, the Hokages and former Otokage, the jinchuuriki stepped forward so that he was in front. "I'll never give up! I'll bring the world true peace, no matter what!"

"Oh?" He chuckled. "Peace... That is what I too desire, a perfect world with no hatred. Shikamaru looked up to see Obito with a wild smirk on his face like a madman.

"Peace is created from resolving differences, not eliminating them, you bastard!"

"Drop the act, your peace will never last. The world is too far gone."

"You say that, yet the shinobi alliance stands strong, united against a common enemy. I say that is the first step to resolving our hatred, and I will do everything in my power to keep you from ruining it," replied Naruto forcefully, determination in his eyes. With a quick nod to his father, he activated his Kyuubi chakra mode. Minato threw a three-pronged kunai, and the two Namikazes ran to both sides of Obito, though below him. Quickly, Naruto launched at the Juubi jinchuuriki though he didn't notice the blond make a cross hand sign. Shikamaru couldn't see any way their attack would work. It would end up in Minato being completely destroyed and Naruto barely alive! _I can't see any more of them die! If I had just trained instead of declaring things troublesome, maybe I'd have somewhat altered the course of events. _

Minato, through use of the **hiraishin**, and Naruto both appeared on opposite sides of Obito, each with a rasengan in hand. The man held out his arms and caught the two jutsu's absorbing them. Naruto ducked, alowing a clone with two rasengan to appear above him and slam it into Obito, resulting somehow in a huge explosion of light.

Shikamaru watched in horror as his friend was encased in a bright white light that extended for twenty feet. "Naruto!" The form of the blond fell to the ground, showing minor signs of life while his father was no where to be seen. From the air, the entire shinobi alliance heard laughter.

Obito was unharmed. "You are growing desperate, Naruto."

The bright yellow cloak dissipated from him in a wisp of smoke, but the injured boy placed his hands on the ground. "I can't stop trying until we win!" he put his knees, then feet on the ground and tried to stand up only to fall back on his face. Sasuke was at his side, and caught him before he had face planted.

"Any last words before I activate** Infinite Tsukuyomi**?" He slowly began going through a few seals, seeming to take great pleasure at the horror of the shinobi before him.

The blond jinchuuriki had something to say. "There are things in this world that people may not like, wars, hatred, pain. But it is how we persevere that makes us who we are. If others could have shouldered your hate, supported you while you were down, you wouldn't have turned out like this, Obito. I've had friends to help me through tough times... Sandaime-jiji, Sakura-chan, Tsunade, Ero-sennin, Kiba, Chouji, Neji, Lee, Ayame-niichan Hinata-chan, Shikamaru..." the Nara raised his head at the blond. "and everyone else. I will make any sacrifice to protect them!" Naruto screamed the last part as he activated his full bijuu mode once again.

_Shit! _Thought Shikamaru. _He didn't use any time to gather chakra, so this is the end of the line. He is the climbing silver in this impossible game of shogi, a final sacrifice If we weren't about to die, I would honor that sacrifice and win, but no one else is in shape to even move. It was a troublesome journey, Naruto, and I'm glad that I was able to know a man even more purehearted than Asuma-sensei and more determined than Lee._

Naruto leaped at the floating Obito in a blur of yellow just as Obito screamed "**INFINITE TSUKUYOMI!"**

All Shikamaru saw was a blur of white. All he felt was the pain of being crushed by a thousand boulders.

* * *

He didn't know how, but Shikamaru was able to open his eyes. _Am I dead? Or was I caught in the genjutsu and all our efforts were worthless?_ In either case, he needed to move. As his blurred vision came into focus, he was able to recognize just where he was, his room. There was the same oak dresser, the same alarm clock, even his calender and various notes from when he was an academy student. He figured out that he was laying in his bed, so he knew where but what about when? His room hadn't been like this for years, and if he had to throw out a guess it would be sometime around the last year at the academy.

"Troublesome," he murmured as he swung his legs to the side of the bed and stood up. Though sturdier than they were after weeks of fighting, his legs felt like they weren't as strong or as stable as he was used to. Not only that, but they made him seem a full 6 or seven inches shorter. With unfamiliar strides, he struggled to the bathroom mirror to help figure out his age. _Why don't I have a troublesome calender anyways? _He wondered.

When he looked in the bathroom mirror, he saw his 11, maybe 12, year old self staring back. He noted that his pinapple-like black hair was still the same, in the same ponytail, and the bored look in his eyes was the same. He was 4 foot 10 or so, wearing a mesh shirt that he normally put his dull green clan jacket over. He had simple black warm up pants on. Wait, why wasn't he dressed for sleep if he was in bed?

"SHIKAMARU!" A voice screamed. _Troublesome... I'll wager that I'm later for the academy. Its not like I learned anything useful there anyways. _Without warning, he mother burst through the door to his room. "You're going to be late," Yoshino Nara whispered loudly in a sickly sweet voice. "That wouldn't be too fun, now would it?" With a freakish face, the now young Nara quickly ran out of his room.

His mother had looked the same. Normal pink gowns, black hair with a small bang over her right side of her forehead. She even had that same 'why are you so lazy' look that she used to give him on a constant basis.

Now, the young Nara was confused. _Wouldn't the genjutsu take away my conciousness to make sure I only made the decisions that Obito wanted? Otherwise it wouldnt work... So how am I over 4 years in the past... I don't think its my imagination, as I don't feel too dead, but then again who really was familliar with how life was after death? Or is this something different, a second chance?_ He pondered all of this as he was ushered into the kitchen by his mother to eat his breakfast. If this was a second chance, Shikamaru decided, he would become strong enough to protect the 'king' this time. It was not often that you got to play a person in shogi with previous knowledge of all their moves, and he needed to use certain moves to force his opponent into a corner. Moves they didn't use last time.

Naturally, the knowledge of Obito, the Akatsuki, and Sasuke's deserting would be useful in the future, so he could slowly convince people to prevent certain incidents. Getting rid of Sasuke's hate would be a chore, if even possible right then, but would him staying in the village solve or hurt the cause? He mentally punched himself for being so inconsiderate about his genin friend and companion, his logical side, however, reminding him that it could be him or the future.

_Troublesome butterfly effect..._ He couldn't change too much, but he couldn;t change too little. Too much and he wouldn't know what would happen next, and the future may result similarly. Too little, and he wouldn't have changed anything. It was like tree walking, he decided.

_Would anyone else have their memory?_ He wondered as an afterthought. He doubted it because lots of people running around in the past with future memories could end up ridiculous. Was he a special case, or did everyone hang on to their memories? And why would it just be him, as his mother didn't seem to remember. He poked his food, still lost in thought. _I guess I just have to wait until I get to the academy to find out. It is an academy day today, right. I'm not late for something completely different?_ Question after question flew through the pinapple-head's thoughts. What if the world was alternate already, and the Yondaime was the evil one and he had to put his trust in Obito. He shivered at the thought, but couldn't totally shove away the possibility that something major had changed.

That all said, he still didn't know if this was the genjutsu or the past. But did it matter? After hearing Naruto's resolve, something had snapped, and he couldn't stand by idly as the world changed around him. He'd be the same calculative, predictive genius, but he'd be strong as well.

Waving goodbye to his mother, his father was probably on a mission, he headed off to the academy to meet his classmates that will help shape the future.

* * *

**A/N- And that was the Prologue for my first official story. I'd like some feedback on the idea and how its written. Also, I'll take any suggestions of Shikax(some girl) pairings. Thanks for reading. Remember to review so you can help me make this more interesting to you. All genius or interesting ideas/plotlines will be considered as long as they relate to cannon in some way. There won't be any major OC's in this story.**

**~Waffles**


	2. Chapter 2

**A Troublesome Chance**

**A/N While I'm all for ShikaTema, it's a bit tough to set up. There just aren't enough arcs with the both of them... I'll figure it out, and you guys could throw out some more pairings too. I'm sticking with third person here too, it seems to be easier to get a good overall picture of what's going on. Without further ado, Chapter 2**

**Disclaimer- You have no idea how badly I'd want to own a character like Shikamaru... considering how often I use his catchphrase...**

**Chapter 1- The Facts of Reality pt1- The Academy**

* * *

Shikamaru had grabbed his usual grey with green trim jacket to go with his mesh shirt and left to walk to the academy. It seemed like a simple task, well of course it would appear to be. He had been to that area for five years straight and had been familiar with the village for all his life, so why was it so tough? Simple really, blame the Akatsuki. Nagato had ripped a huge hole in the middle of Konoha, completely ruining all the streets people used to get around, so they had to find a new way. Which was generally longer. And that long way made a certain Nara late for the first of many troublesome academy days. He could still hear the young banshee version of Sakura screaming all class long, waking him up. If one thing could change with the next few days, it'd be that.

It was weird for Shikamaru to suddenly have shorter legs and a less mature body. Both would take some getting used to. All foolishness aside, the former Chuunin was spending the entire walk contemplating how he should go about the day, running a few ideas over through his head. He decided, in the end, to not seem too different as to arouse suspicion. Shikamaru paying attention in class was a sign of the apocalypse according to Iruka, and he'd have no idea how right that was. No, he couldn't act different, but he could pretend to improve and show his intelligence on the tests. He'd still get put with Chouji and Ino for their combination jutsu, and it would set the tone for a smarter, more influential version of himself.

He also needed to test and see how much of his abilities he retained. If he kept his chakra control that'd be great, considering it was a function of the brain on how much chakra to release, and assumed his knowledge was the same as previously. With that chakra control and familiarity with the clan's shadow jutsu, he should be able to use **Kage Nui** (shadow stitching) and **Kagemane** (shadow imitation) well enough once he builds up the reserves.

With his worries for the present, there was one from his past, err.. future. Asuma Sarutobi. He didn't know if he could act lazy and bored around the man at first and figured his memories would often get in the way of looking his sensei in the eyes. He'd have to deal with it in the time to come, and if his assumptions were right that was about a year.

_I've got too much on my mind..._ he pointed out. _I gotta take this one thing at a time, starting with my day at the academy. I'll observe everyone and make sure this is the past before I plan about the future. If they also know of the future, then I won't have to shoulder it all by myself, but I still need to figure out their speech, habits, actions. Anything that differs from what I remember will be cause for curiosity. Troublesome._ He really wished sometimes that he had a one-track mind like Naruto and wouldn't find himself overthinking and worrying about the simplest of things. Especially those out of his control.

'Out of his control'... That described what he saw when he walked into the distantly familiar classroom. Naruto was in a one-sided shouting match with Sasuke, only to be knocked on the head by Sakura who was arguing with Ino. Kiba started talking about the jinchuuriki's stupidity, leading to another loud argument. The soon-to-be genin all wore their typical clothing that he remembered. Nothing out of the ordinary, like a Naruto with red hair or a smiling Sasuke.

Iruka wasn't in the room yet, so the tardy Nara was cleared and free to sit... where did he normally sit before? _Next to Chouji I guess,_ he decided.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" Chouji greeted, munching on some chips. He wore the same dull green and grey shirt as before with the two swirls on his cheek and vertigo brown hair.

"Hey, Chouji. I know its troublesome, but do you remember how long from now we graduate?" He worded it carefully in his head, putting out the necessary information to make it seem like he still had the same 'troublesome' personality.

"I can't be more than a month now, I think." Shikamaru resisted using his signature word to reply. This Chouji definitely wasn't from the future. His friend was never one for subtleties, so he wouldn't be able to hide his stronger, more confident personality from the future so well. No, the Akimichi was surely still the overly caring, sorta shy, best friend that the pinapple-head was friends with. It was almost nostalgic and refreshing in a way to see him so innocent.

The madness around the rest of the room was going on, excluding Shino and Hinata, when Iruka walked in, pissed at the scene. **"EVERYBODY SHUT UP AND GET IN YOUR SEATS!**" His head was demonic and huge when he did that... "Anyways, we are going to have some spars today." Everyone cheered. "After a long lesson about the third shinobi war." Naruto practically died while the rest of the class just groaned in pain.

After muttering a quick troublesome, the Nara lay face-first on the desk and pretended to doze off. In reality, he was more attentive than ever. The events he heard lined up with what he established as the true occurences of the war. Sakumo messed up, huge fight with Iwa, Minato Namikaze, and the relatively minor skirmish with Kiri. _Ha! Minor! Yet that one skirmish created so many problems with Rin and_ Obito. (**A/N I'm just saying Shikamaru knew what happened, as it was probably mentioned or alluded to in front of the shinobi alliance during some point in the manga. If thats not the case, let me know.) **

Finally, after numerous reminders of a test, the group of academy students was ushered outside for a quick lunch break. Naruto, unfortunately, had resumed his signature place on the swing of depression, while Chouji and Shikamaru had sat down at a table together, ignoring most of the other students. The whipped up some small talk, Chouji asking about his father and various clan matters, while Shikamaru tried his best to respond. He could always just tell Chouji of the future, the genjutsu and his suspicions. _Sure I could convince him. But what would that mean for him? I can't place that burden on a friend, and I still don't know if it's a genjutsu or the past._ He was more than inclined to say it was the past, as the genjutsu theory didn't align up enough. Naruto's attack could have blocked the jutsu and caused some space-time distortion or something wacky. That kind of theoretical subject wasn't the Nara's forte. In any case, if it was a genjutsu, it was a genjutsu with a similar to exact same past. Basically, to Shikamaru, it no longer mattered if it was either because he's still treat it the same way. There would be no way to dispel a sharingan jutsu used with that much chakra anyways, so might as well enjoy it.

"Shikamaru."

"Yeah?"

"You're going to finish those rice balls, right?" He gave a friendly grin as a response.

"Na, it'll be too troublesome if you want them, buddy." He passed the big bonned boy a couple, knowing he'll probably still be hungry after his lunch. "It'll be great if were on a team together in the future." He just meant it as a topic to get a decent conversation flowing in order to try to get the feel for how he'd normally act. It's definitely a challenge to go from a war zone to an education setting without warning and not be overly cautious or slightly emotionless. Especially after the white Zetsu incident.

"Hmm, I'd love to be on a team with you. Tou-san told me that we will be the next Ino-Shika-Cho. You guys will live up to it , but I'm no good at fighting."

"Troublesome Chouji... You'd be great at fighting the moment someone threatens someone you care about."

"Whatever you say, Shikamaru, you always seem to know this stuff anyways."

"Oh, and don't worry about Ino. She may be troublesome, but I'm sure she'll get over it." _Have I revealed too much already? Naah, it's just Chouji. He'd never backstab me 'cause we trust each other with our lives and deepest secrets. Oooh, man now I can't say that one either, but I guess some responsibilities aren't meant to be shared, ne_ Asuma-sensei? He asked the question, looking up to the clouds as his normal habit._ I gotta stop that habit too, Asuma's alive and well. _"I think we should go ask Naruto to join us."

"Ya, he seems really lonely. I wonder why," replied Chouji, concerned for his classmate.

The two of them paused mid lunch to recruit the blond, the Akimichi of course grabbing his chips. Naruto was staring at the ground as some kids from fifty yards away pointed at him and laughed. Shikamaru had always thought that Naruto really had a tough life and overcame it in a peaceful, kind way. Even if that way was a little bit frivolous and involved large amounts of water balloons or paint.

"What's got you down, Naruto?" asked Shikamaru, trying not to associate this boy with the near godly powerful one in the future.

Naruto seemed to be surprised, making the Nara realize that no one must have asked him he was before other than Iruka. It immediately brought guilt to him that he never, in all five years of the academy, asked Naruto why he was upset, instead preferring the clouds and his best friend. It took him saving the village from Pein, confronting Obito, and time travel to ask a simple question.

Naruto then tried to put on a quick smile, failing. "It's alright guys, I'm fine."

"You just seem sad," pointed out Chouji. "If I was sad, I'd talk to Shikamaru, but you don't have anyone in our year. So you can talk to us." He sounded determined to help someone out, and that made Shikamaru grin. _This is what our village was built on. Everyone caring for eachother and protecting their friends and comrades._

"Yeah, we're going to be your friends from here on out!" Declared Shikamaru, suprising both with his convition and the loudness of his voice.

"It's just that," he paused and gave the two a solemn look, "everyone seems to hate me when I didn't do anything wrong. They ignored me and glared, so I started doing some pranks and it's gotten better but-" He just stopped and leaned forward. "Every day, I see my classmates with their friends and wonder why I can't have any."

Shikamaru placed a hand on his comrade's shoulder and gave him an attempt at a smile. _Should I tell him? Would it make him try any less if he knew he was the Yondaime's son? No, he is the epitome of perserverance if he has to go through this every day and still manages to be lighthearted. I'll tell him about the Kyuubi, or Kurama, or whatever his name is. _With his new resolve, Shikamaru crouched down to the height of the sitting Naruto and answered his life-long question.

"I'm observant, you see," he began tentatively. "For a few years I've not a few discrepancies. To name a few, your birthday is the day of the Kyuubi attack, Bijuu have to be sealed, not killed, and those idiots calling you a demon."

"What are you saying?" replied the orange-wearing boy. Chouji also gave his friend an odd look, seeing how he never really puts himself into others' lives. He also wanted to know why Naruto was so hated, as he liked the obnoxious kid to an extent, and hated jibes and teasing.

"The villagers think you are the Kyuubi, but you're actually a jinchuuriki."

"WHAT?" He shouted back, standing above the crouching Shikamaru. In a calmer tone he added, "whats a jinchuuriki?"

"It means 'the power of human sacrifice.' The Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi into you because he thought you could control it, but the civilians needed a scapegoat for the attack and the fox was already gone. You understand what sealing is, right?" He was met with a nod, as expected from a Uzumaki. "You are like a scroll and the Kyuubi is a kunai. You contain it and keep it from going on another rampage." He wouldn't reveal knowledge of the masked Obito Uchiha, anyways. "The Yondaime probably wanted to use the power in the future."

Both of the two kids were stunned. Not only for the fact that Shikamaru had deduced all of this, and that what he deduced was completely insane. No, they were also surprised that he didn't add in one 'troublesome.' Chouji wondered what happened to his friend to make him significantly lazy, while Naruto in his overwhelming intelligence didn't find anything unusual.

"So I am the Kyuubi?"

"Weren't you listening?" Sighed Shikamaru. "Troublesome blond. It is sealed in you so you aren't the Kyuubi, and the civilians have no right to call you a demon."

Chouji tried to interrupt the following silence. "Come have some lunch with us Naruto."

"I don't have anything to eat. They shops won't let me buy enough food."

"Ehh, you can lend him some rice balls Chouji."

He nodded to the Nara in response and asked Naruto to follow them without any chance for the jinchuuriki to argue. They went back over to their small able while Shikamaru kicked back on his side and stared at the clouds. While the other two talked, he just thought about the past as he remembered it, and what he could have changed._ I tried to do the right thing, Asuma-sensei. But what if the simple thing I changed leads Naruto to hate the village, and he never gets to save us from the Akatsuki? There are too many variables in play for me to calculate this. Whatever happens, I'll fulfill Naruto's dream. "I'll never give up! I'll bring the world true peace, no matter what!" Peace, that'd save us from a bunch of troublesome things..._ Shikamaru made a silent promise to his former and future teacher and one of his best friends to perservere through what's tough and at least save the future, even at the cost of peace.

He was sure Naruto and Chouji would get along, as they were both kind and overly protective of their friends. Their loudness levels may be a different story, both a challenge for later, but they'll help each other out in that respect.

After a quick remainder of the lunch break and one hungry Chouji later, the three of them followed the other kids into class. Not one person looked sideways at the three as they found seats near the back of the room. As usual, Iruka walked in to find the most infuriating type of kid, a Nara, sleeping face down. Honestly, Shikamaru thought he deserved some rest after holding down the Juubi for a few seconds and working his ass off to help his friends. Sleep was just his way for dealing with a lot of troublesome stuff. Now, Iruka didn't know that. All the other kids, even Naruto, were listening attentively for sparing partners, and this genius Nara had the nerve to constantly disrespect him.

"**WAKE UP SHIKAMARU!"** He commanded forcefully, throwing a piece of chalk at the boy. Naruto started laughing uncontrollably while the rest of the class seemed to face fault at the coud-watcher's antics. Chouji sighed and nudged his now awake friend to sit up and pay attention. Grudgingly, Shikamaru complied and listened while the matches were read off.

"Ino with Sakura, Naruto with Kiba, Sasuke with Shino, Shikamaru (Iruka shot a look at him to make sure he was focused) with Chouji, Hinata gets this one off." He then listed off the pairings for the next round, guys against guys, and girls against girls. After finishing the third matches, Shikamaru would be fighting Chouji, Naruto, and Shino.

* * *

"Iruka-sensei."

"What is it Shikamaru?" He was standing, facing his big-bonned friend in front of the Iruka's and Mizuki's classes, while Iruka stood a few feet away to supervise. They were in a small, chalked out circle that was drawn in the dusty ground to help organize and control the taijutsu spars.

"I can't fight my best friend."

"Why's that?"

"It would be too troublesome to fight someone I care for." That was his excuse last time, right? No matter, Iruka seemed to be convinced and decided to give up on the lazy kid.

"Alrgiht, at least make the reconciliation sign..." Chouji gave him an unbeleiveably grateful nod as they locked fingers. He knew that Shikamaru did it due to the fact that Chouji would never willingly harm anyone without a good reason. _I've got to get him out of that phase. _Chouji was too gentil until he faced off with Asuma's Edo-tensei in the war. Shikamaru would never forgive Kabuto for that.

"Next up is going to be Ino and Hinata..." Shikamaru took a seat on the ground next to his friend and watched a few fights. Hinata was as shy as ever, but she managed to pull out a win that made her feel sorry for Ino. Kiba lost to Sasuke, and Chouji and Shino just skipped their match, knowing the bug user would win. Thus, it was time for Shikamaru vs Naruto. The pair walked into the circle with the former's hands stuck in his pockets and an irriated frown.

"I'm going to win, lazy ass!" he proclaimed loudly, making Shikamaru sweat drop.

"Winning's too troublesome anyways." He wondered if he should reveal his knowledge of taijutsu skill, but then again Naruto was the dead last, so winning wouldn't reveal too much, right?

"Alright, begin."

The moment Iruka's hand dropped, Naruto flung at the Nara with an obvious left hook. Shikamaru ducked and kicked him in the stomach, not taking his hands out of his pockets. Naruto skidded back, still on his feet. _I gotta work on my strength... Again. How troublesome._ Naruto skidded backa bit from the kick, nearly landing outside of the white circle. Shikamaru didn't move as the blond came back with a flurry of mismatched punches.

To the Nara, the attack was almost slow motion, making it a piece of cake to dodge the attacks. Quickly exploiting an opening, he kicked at Naruto's chest, but it came up just shy. _Stupid, troublesome, short legs... _he sighed as Naruto tried to get a solid punch in. Shikamaru simply stepped to the side. The blond fell, crashing to the ground face first and kicking up a cloud of dust.

Shikamaru didnt move...

He didn't even take his hands out of his pockets...

As Naruto struggled to regain his footing, he pointed accusingly at the cloud watcher. "When'd you get so good!" He just sighed again in response. _Well I screwed that up,_ he thought. He had underestimated his future prowess compared to the academy students. A mistake like that would make most lose a game of shogi, but Shikamaru always found a way to turn his own miscalculations into a discrete advantage.

The blond boy backed away and resumed to take his spot next to Chouji, and Shikamaru barely made it out of the circle when he fell flat on his back to watch some clouds.

"Uhh..." Iruka began, clearly stunned, "winner: Shikamaru. Anyways, the next match will be between Sasuke and Shikamaru, seeing how the later has displayed some skills."

"KICK HIS ASS SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura screached which caused many people to cover their ears.

"GO SASUKE-KUN!" Ino added enthusiastically though not as loud as Sakura. _Troublesome... Do I really have to deal with the fangirl phase? Why can't the troublesome blond just get over it like last time? _Then he remembered that last time Sasuke left the village.

Shikamaru got back up nd walked into the sparring area as the two fangirls started to 'decide' who Sasuke liked more.

"Hn, prepare to lose." This statement made the girls swoon.

"Troublesome." He pulled his hands out his pockets, letting them rest by his black pants.

Iruka stepped between them, then backed away "Begin!"

Sasuke waited for his opponent to make the first move. "Can we use jutsu?" Sasuke asked.

The instructor shrugged. "I don't see why not." He really had it out for the lazy kid.

Without further wait, Sasuke flew through some handseals and declared **"****Katon: Goukakyuu no** **Jutsu **(Fire release: Grand fireball technique)" as he was finishing. Shikamaru sighed and quickly formed the rat seal, trapping his opponent in a shadow before he could finish the handsigns. Sasuke seemed infuriated and struggled against the jutsu. The future traitor would have to speed up his handsigns if he were to become stronger. Meanwhile, Sasuke was enraged, thinking '_I'm the last Uchiha, but I got beat by a puny shadow jutsu? How can I hope to beat Itachi without more power.'_

"It is better if you do not announce your jutsu until you're finished," he said. "But in my case, it still works. **Kage–Kubishibari no Jutsu.** (Shadown neck binding technique)" With a quick three seal sequence, the shadow crept up Sasuke's body until it was resting around his neck.

In the mind of all the spectators was one question: _**How the hell was the lazy ass cloud watcher capable of taking down the Rookie of the Year without moving or breaking a**_** sweat?** Shikamaru wondered if he had gone overboard with showing his skills, even if the fight was a fluke. It's not like it was hard to trap Sasuke in **Kagemane** while he finished up slow handsigns, as the Uchiha was too arrogant to think that Shikamaru could use any jutsu on him. He was thankful that he could still use jutsu he technically hadn't learned yet, even if he had only a few more in his repertoire.

"Forefeit, Sasuke."

"I'll never lose to a non-Uchiha!" He spat.

"You may not lose in a battle-setting confrontation" the duck-haired boy smirked "but even weaker opponents will beat you if you don't use your head. Ne, Iruka-sensei, this match is too troublesome. I forfeit..." The rest of the students couldn't decide to facepalm or be even more surprised and impressed. Chouji wasn't, considering he and Shikamaru knew that they each had a hidden strength. Shikamaru knew the Chouji would become strong to protect his friends, while Chouji knew the Nara was hiding his intellignce and skill, declaring class as 'too troublesome.'

Unknown to the spectators, Shikamaru couldn't keep up his jutsu for much longer. Without his former reserves, it was much more draining to keep the struggling Uchiha in his place. "Seeing as Sasuke is unfit to continue, Shikamaru wins this one. I'd like to have a talk with you, Shikamaru, after class today."

_Noooooooooo, of all the times for me to be forced to do something I don't want to. Ohhh, man if I'm not home on time, Kaa-san would kill me._

* * *

After Class (Iruka PoV)

* * *

Shikamaru was the last remaining in the room, sitting right in front of Iruka, courtesy of the teacher. His head was hung forward slightly in a modified resting pose as his short grey jacket hung over himself. Iruka saw this boy as an enigma with potential, and he really tried to motivate him. Unlike most teachers, he cared for all his students and wished to set them on the path to a sucessful future. Especially Naruto. He may seem tough at some times to Shikamaru and others, but it was just to hide the chuunin's concern and to push to lean.

"Now I want to know. How can you do that all the sudden?"

"Huh?"

"How'd your taijutsu and ninjutsu improve so much over the past day?"

"Hmm, well I've been doing some thinking." At Iruka's puzzled expression, he continued. "I've always known everything you talk about in class, so I just don't pay attention. Sleep was much more important than rehearing things I knew."

"Really, then how do you explain that you have the second-to-last test scores?"

"Well, they're too troublesome, and it doesn't really matter as long as I graduate." Iruka seemed to contemplate it, and realized that this kid was right. The civilian council had taken away almost all of the challange and true teaching away from the academy, turning it into a daycare with an easy graduation test. He wished he'd stepped up his classes education and his expectations, but then he remembered that Naruto would have an even harder time with becoming a genin.

"Some people need this to graduate. It'd be better to show them respect by seeming to pay attenion. And you still haven't told me where your fighting skills came from."

"One thing at a time, Iruka-sensei. I'm sure you're referring to Naruto?"

"Yeah."

Iruka saw him pause for a few seconds, contemplating. He was completely unaware that the person sitting in front of him was contemplating just how mch to reveal in order to maintain a realistic, logical conclusion. "Well the reason he's having problems with ninjutsu is because of his huge chakra reserves due to the Kyuubi. Ya, I know about that, I figured it out a year ago. His genjutsu problems are for similar reasons. He isn't smart because he can't learn through books and boring lectures." He flinched as he mentioned the lectures. "That's because when he was young, no one taught him patience or how to listen, as their hated convinced them that he was the fox. Lastly, his lack of a taijutsu style is from the teachers before you sabotaging his learing and leaving him to use his own, sloppy moves."

Iruka was stunned. _Just how smart are you, Shikamaru. I knew you were hiding something, but to think it was this much deduction ability. He will truly be just like his father, and maybe even the jonin commander and chief strategist one day. But just how did his taijutsu get that good? That is something that takes years of practice and is almost impossible to pretend not to have, as he did with his other spars. _"How did you hide your skill for taijutsu?"

"I don't actually have any skill, besides the Academy Style. I just am good at finding an opening and dodging, both of which make it easy for me to defeat Naruto."

"Alright, and I assume your ninjutsu came from clan training." he was met with a nod. "Well, you're free to go then, just don't act so lazy in the future."

"Didn't you notice?" Iruka made a puzzled face.

"Notice what?"

"I say 'troublesome' for this entire conversation." Before Iruka could come back to his senses, trying to think of a time the boy no doubt said his signature catch phrase, Shikamaru had escaped. The chuunin expressed a smirk when he realized that the boy was gone.

To borrow the words of a certain shadow user Iruka thought, _That kid is way to troublesome. I fear for his Jonin-sensei_. Somewhere in Konoha, a bearded man sneezed, forcing a cigarette to fall out of his teeth.

* * *

With Shikamaru

* * *

He had done it! With a labored smile, he prided himself in not only fitting in on his first day, but with accomplishing all he set off to do. Befriending Naruto, trying to raise Chouji's confidence, beating some arrogance out of Sasuke (which probably was a blow to fangirlism too), and even convinced Iruka-sensei that he was reasonably competent. It would take a few weeks before the exam, which Chouji claimed was in a month, to make his 'improvement' seem realistic. He wouldn't try to be rookie of the year, though, as it could wind up with unexpected consequences.

All in all, as he walked home, the Nara was happy. Actually, he was beyond that. After weeks of depressing, ruthless war, he had a chance to kick back, relax, and work a bit on becoming stronger. No, he would try to work harder for Naruto's sake. He'd try to train his future team too, just to make them all that much more effective. Maybe they could finally surpass their fathers.

He smirked at the thought of what they could do together to fix the future, then groaned out load at the amount of work it would require. Sure he had much more drive, but he always hated the work.

He would walk home, and find both of his parents waiting for him, asking about his day. They were always there to keep up his spirits, even if his mother was troublesome and his father was almost as lazy as himself. Shikamaru regretted only being at home a few days since Naruto had returned from his training trip and all the issues with the Akatsuki started. Between missions and saving the world, he hadn't spent any time with his family. That's what made it hurt even more when Shikaku died. Man, he knew they'd keep him from getting depressed, as they'd always figured out what was bugging him. _I guess that's what having an observational genius for a father amounts to ne?_

Like the Raikage's fists, a thought hit him. A single variable that he seemed to have ignored. A fatal mistake. How in the world could he explain all of his change, foreknowledge, use of unlearned clan jutsu, and future strength to his father? How long could he hide it before the secret would be spilled?

* * *

**A/N Chapter 2 (or chapter 1 if you don't count the short prologue) is out.**

**This chapter was basically to say how just goddamn analytical and smart Shikamaru is, and how good he is with predicting actions and pushing the right buttons. He is trying to combat his laziness too.**

**After writing this chapter, I can honestly compare myself to him and say we are pretty similar in character, though I'm not near as smart and not quite as lazy.**

**I'd like some input on this one, even though it isn't as interesting as the first and is more of a character development chapter. I'm probably going to include a tough mission for team 10. Which mission, you won't know for a few chapters ;)**

**Oh if you catch any really obvious or stupid discrepancies/spelling/grammar feel free to shoot me a message. (This chapter has just been edited)**

**Oh man, please review guys, I'm practically dying here to know if I'm doing this right O.o**

**Stay troublesome, fellas**

**~Waffles**


	3. Chapter 3

**A Troublesome Chance**

**Disclaimer- I don't own Naruto**

**Chapter 2- The Facts of Reality pt2: Loose Ends**

* * *

"Shikamaru, how nice, you're home just in time for dinner." The pinapple-haired boy shuddered at the tone behind those words. The translation was somewhere along the lines of 'WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU COME HOME FROM THE ACADEMY ON TIME?' He knew the figure in front of him was far deadlier than the worst enemy he'd ever faced, even worse than a Hokage's paperwork. Oh yes, this was his mother, Yoshino Nara.

His mother was never one for lateness, ironically, and led to the male half of the Nara clan labeling her as a 'troublesome woman.' Which was true. She took every oppertunity to scold him and his father about waking up early, not sleeping in class, taking more missions... etc. Her black hair ran down the back of her head near her pink blouse while three lose strands framed the irritation on her face. Besides her sweet, or scary, smiles, this was her average expression.

"Yeah, I stayed after school with Iruka-sensei." Which was true, but he didn't admit to being outside catching up on training for two hours as well. Maybe the time travelling Nara hadn't lost too much of his troublesome attitude, seeing how he tried to procrastinate seeing his parents to think up some reasonable excuses. Somehow, his mother always _ALWAYS_ knew what he did, so no excuse could really save him. The poor kid had no idea just how she had gotten the gossip at light speed, though he guessed it was from Ino's mother. It used to scare Shikamaru... but now, it terrified him.

"With Iruka, huh? FOR THREE HOURS!?"

"Ugh, I know it's troublesome, but I really have to start training." At least he didn't have to explain this to his dad right now, as he was not home. That was easily determined by the lack of a flack jacket hanging on the wall near the door.

"Training?" What happened to her son, this word seemed almost extinct in the Nara household. Just when'd it creep up into Shika's vocabulary? She played it off as a miracle of Kami, only to quickly remember what Ino's mother mentioned about Shika winning against the Uchiha protegy. She knew he was strong and hiding skills from his classmates, but that was only because it was too goddamn hard for him to get off his lazy ass and do something.

He gulped. "I'm trying not to be so lazy." She didn't need to know he was telling the truth, her maternal perception was reliable enough for that.

"Smells fishy without proof, so I'll make Shika-kun interrogate you after dinner. You think I don't know what happened at the academy today?" Shikamaru internally groaned. Not only did he have to play his father in shogi (thats what interrogation was, shogi and talking), but he had to avoid revealing _anything _to his genius father and observant mother. _Troublesome parents..._

"I KNOW YOU'RE THINKING OF THAT WORD, SHIKAMARU!" _Does my expression really give away that much?_

"Kaa-san." She paused the scolding for a second. "When will Tou-san be home?"

"In time for a good family dinner at 7:00, and if I find out you are asleep when he gets home, I'll take away your shogi for a month." Shikamaru mentally screamed. _Not my shogi set! It's probably the only thing that can keep me entertained without clouds or Chouji. Cruel woman..._

"Hai..." he muttered, heading up to his room. The level of troublesomeness in the living room and kitchen was off the charts, nearly reaching the amount of the Chuunin Exams, and man was that awful. _TWO _woman opponents, an invasion, and Orochimaru in the second exam... It was official, life hated him.

He stayed up in his room for twenty minutues or so, he arrived home around 6:15, so he could have some time to wash up and think. His father seemed more mind reading than Inoichi when they played. When Shikamaru beat him, his father still was able to get the boy to reveal his entire hopes, dreams, failures, and pain. He did so almost seemlessly with the game, just like Asuma. The cloud watcher didn't stop thinking about how he could keep his father from becoming suspicious, as it is obvious when you hide skills in a game of shogi. He shrugged it off, there was nothing he could do about it.

Except tell Shikaku everything. _Could I do that? Is it better to have help to change the future, or do I act as Itachi and do it alone?_

After throwing on a grey clan shirt, he made his way into the living room just in time for his father to come in. Shikaku had hair much like his son and two scars above and below his right eye. Shikamaru hardly recounted seeing his father in anything but his flack jacket of the clothes under it, and he himself had adopted the signature Nara outfit when he became chuunin. When he saw the elder Nara, he had trouble biting back some tears, as he was influenced greatly for the past day from the man's death.

"Shika, you alright?" he asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I blame Kaa-san... She's more troublesome than usual today."

"Shh. Don't her hear. By the way, she has good reason to be. Chouji told Chouza and me everything that happened today. Apparently, you seem more motivated, enough to beat that Uchiha." _HOW IN THE WORLD DOES SOMETHING THIS SMALL TRAVEL SO FAST?_

"He's not that hard of an opponent. Iruka-sensei let us use ninjutsu, so I trapped him with **Kagemane** and got him to call the match." Shikaku nodded, clearly agreeing that the Uchiha was never what everyone propped him up to be. In reality, the boy was still a boy who had too much pride to ask for help training.

Shikaku organized his thoughts a bit, thinking, _W__hat's this I've heard about him using **Kage–Kubishibari no**_** Jutsu? **(shadow neck binding technique) _True, he does spend some time with some of his clansmen in the archives every now and then, so if he trained he could have technically figured out the jutsu. It isn't a tough, comletely different, variation such as the **Kag****e**** nui**_(shadow sewing). _That still brings up the dilema of where his effort came from. Troublesome woman, making me look too hard into a simple matter..._

"We better go make your troublesome mother happy and eat her food. At least we have a guys only dinner tomorrow at the BBQ place with Inoichi, Chouza, and Chouji tomorrow."

"Man... she's going to make you interrogate me during a game of shogi."

"Typical. I'll let you off this time so long as you actually train a bit. We're still up for a game though, right?"

"You bet. I'll finally beat you this time."

"You've still got a bit to learn before you can defeat me. I'll hand it to you though, last game was too close for my liking."

The two contiued the conversation as they walked into the kitchen and sat down wile Yoshino finished preparing some sushi, no doubt without mackerel, his favorite fish, just to spite the academy student. She commented that they were in the room early and drummed up a converation about Shikaku's mission. The trio had searched for the cause of a disturbance near the border of the fire country, and it was mostly an intelligance-gathering mission. They were only told to fight if it went south, but nothing happened really. They heard rumors of a few unexplained disappearances and a bit about a new village, Otogakure, located in the Land of Grass.

They ate in relative silence, each waiting for the other to say something about poor Shikamaru's day. His day was actually two days, seeing as he was sent back in time during the night and woke up in the past in the morning. Anyone in his position would be tired, but Shikamaru felt that on a whole other level. After about five minutes, his father commented on how troublesome the silence was, earning him a fork thrown at his cheek. He nodded quickly and apologized to his wife, internally sighing all the way.

Shikamaru missed these dinners. He wasn't able to stop a stupid grin lighting up the corners of his mouth, resulting in a spoon grazing his cheek. "Man... you're going to give me scars like Tou-san if you keep doing that."

"How do you think I got these scars?" He deadpanned.

"On a mission you idiotic Nara!"

"Right... sorry Yoshino-chan."

That's more like his disfuntional family. To him, they were the best parents he could have, no matter how troublesome they could act at times. His mom just wanted what was best for him, while his dad decided to let him find his own drive. Hopefully, Shikaku thought his son had found his drive.

"Arigatou, Kaa-san," Shikamaru said, standing up and heading out to get the shogi board set.

Shikaku smiled, releived to get a chance to kick back after his mission. What better way to do so then play a game with his only near-equal in intelligance, his son. "I better follow the kid. You know how he gets when he wants a match with me."

"Make sure you're both in bed before ten! I'd hate to drag either of you out of bed," she warned as he walked out.

**- (A/N I don't have any clue about shogi...)-**

"So, Shika, what's gotten into you today," his father asked, moving his knight to block a bishop that was in position to take his own silver general. _Man, this game is getting intense. I think Shika might have figured out the my signature underlying strategy. Not even Asuma could figure that one out until he came back from the Twelve Ninja Guardians, and then he still couldn't beat it._

"You mean with training after school and showing some skills in class?" Shikamaru took the knight with a rook.

"You could say that. I understand your skills, but where did the drive come from." The rook was taken by a pawn.

"A realization." His bishop captured the pawn.

"What kind?"

"What if the Yondaime was lazy? What if the Sannin never decided to become great? Jiraiya-sama may have graduated early, but he was the bottom of his class. They hadn't expected to be powerful, they worked for it, as troublesome as it is. And even if I dont become great like them I will still make a difference." He moved a piece.

"You aren't still in that phase of wanting a wife who's not too pretty or mean, settling down as a working chuunin, and having two kids?"

"I can't leave that familly unprotected any more, just as my king is guarded by pawns. No matter how little the power, it can still be used in some way. We might be useless but at some point we might turn out useful too. Even a little power could change the future of the world." (**A/N that quote is from Shika during the fight with the Juubi**).

Shikaku looked from his son to the board, stunned beyond measure. The boy seemed resolute, stronger in his convition than ever before. While still sounding like his analytical son, he said something wise beyond his years, which was probably a quote from some jonin. Still, that was hardly the end of his shock. His son had finally won in a game of shogi. After an intense hour and a half, his king was trapped in the back row.

"Why did you change? Why have your eyes seen so much pain?"

Shikamaru quickly thought up an answer. "Naruto. He was hated, beat, and even nearly killed, but he kept on trying to earn their respect. It gave me my own respect for him, and for the village through his goals. The pain, I'm obervant. You know that, and I see what people have to live with. If their father was dead, and how that would be for me. All because I was too lazy and not strong enough to protect you." He felt a bit bad about lying to his father like that, but there was a great deal of truth to his words. He meant those convictions and found himself finally comitted to something since his smoking habit.

Shikaku was touched. It was amazing to see just how his son had grown. He hadn't expected for his son to be worried for him of all people, though all of the jonin missions could have gotten him worried a bit. _Nonetheless, it was weird when he said he wouldn't let me die, like he knew how it'd feel. Maybe he saw someone after their parents passed._

Each mulling over the conversation, they packed up the shogi board and looked at the time. It was 8:30, but neither really had it in them for another game.

Shikamaru went to his room and finally got to crash in his bed. By now, it was dark outside and not a single bit of light passed through his window. _A new moon,_ he noticed. He still didn't know if one day he'd look up and see nine tomoe arranged around three circles.

Under his breath, the boy created a **kage bunshin**. His reserves were miniscule compared to before, as he couldn't even hold the Uchiha for a minute. A minute against an academy student versus five secconds against the Juubi, take your pick. When he figured out he could still make one, he'd sent it out to go increase his control and reserves while he slept, maybe allowing him to soon make another and exponentially speed up the process from there. A non-lazy Nara was no pushover, even a lazy Nara was a wothy adversary for most.

He would discover how well his new method would work now that is chakra coils were in their adolescent state, allowing him to possibly increase his max amount of chakra by the time Naruto got back from training trip. Just how much more chakra was a speculation, but if he trained every day he was sure the results would be impressive.

On that note, he needed to train his elemental affinity at some point too. Doton would be a useful secondary repertoire for creating shadows and trapping opponents. He could also work on a new clan technique that he had worked out the theory for. **(****A/N more on that later)**

All that was left for him to was train, train his friends, contol Naruto's loudness, reduce fangirlism, stare at clouds, and hang out with Chouji. _I'm not going to be able to sleep in for the rest of my life am I?_ He sighed when his mind didn't answer. _As I thought... Troublesome._ He flopped back onto the bed with a thump and promptly fell asleep.

* * *

Time skip- about 1 month

* * *

Currently, Shikamaru was on his way to the Academy for team selections. Of course, he had graduated in the middle of the class, having not done the writen test at all when he declared why to the entire class with a groan of "too roublesome." He had gotten top scores in the sparing and ninjutsu sections. Then again, he probably could have done the exact same thing in the last timeline if he wasn't so damn lazy. It's not like his score mattered though, he assumed he'd still be put with Ino and Chouji.

During the long, arduous task of going through the academy, he hadn't revealed any more revelations. To the others, he just seemed like that lazy Nara they all knew with an extra drive whenever he needed to get something done. In class, he wasn't any different but was more protective of his friends. Everything seemed to be turning out well so far.

His dad seemed to get off his case after the game of shogi, although Shikaku pestered his son into playing a few more games of shogi. Shikamaru won a little more than half which was an amazing feat for anyone who knew the Nara clan head. Yoshino, on the other hand, couldn't stop asking what he was doing, why his grades were bad, and so on. The troublesome woman just hadn't changed a bit from how she was in the other timeline.

As far as training goes, he sent out a **kage bunshin** every night before he went to sleep, and slowly upped the numbers until he could do three. How Naruto managed thousands was complete madness. A chuunin could only make about eight at most without the clones' life span being shortened to a few minutes. Thankfully, he didn't get the feeling of staying awake from his clones and it let him catch up on a great deal of sleep. Sometimes, he wondered if his parents could catch on and discover the clones trainining in the Nara forest, practicing shadow techniques on the deer, harmlessly of course.

Without a teacher, his doton affinity remained untrained. That was kind of a bonus, as it allowed him to concentrate more on the stuff that he deemed less troublesome. He preached that chakra control and increasing reserves required much less activity and could be accomplished by laying on your back on water. Now he could watch coulds and train at the same time... Genius. This so-called training plus what he did with the **kage bunshin** gave him back the chakra reserves he'd had by the time he returned with the Sasuke Retreival Squad. Oh ya, he trained a special jutsu that he was developing too and was almost good enough at it to use it in a spar.

On top of his training, he saw something else in the world change, Naruto. While the kid wouldn't get rid of the orange jumpsuit, his personality had calmed down a bit. Ever since the Kyuubi was brought up, the Uzumaki seemed almost releived and distressed at the same time. In the corner of his eye, Shikamaru could swear he sometimes saw Naruto with a basic fuuinjutsu book during class. The loud, annoying Naruto was still there on the occasions that Iruka promised a boring lesson or someone needed pranking. He didn't do the Hokage Monument prank anymore, but he's taken to small ones like unscrewing a chair leg or placing a bucket of paint on the door. Even Shikamaru had to stay awake for the time Iruka was covered in pink paint. The next day, they all learnt the true meaning of 'deah by boredom.'

Shikamaru constantly worried whether he had changed too much already, maybe causing Naruto to hate Konoha. His fears were completely denied one day a week before graduation. Naruto had left class with Iruka for lunch and a chat, and came back with a stupid grin on his face. After the event, the jinchuuriki hadn't felt down again.

* * *

**Flashback- Naruto PoV**

Naruto flipped through the pages of his red book. Fuuinjutsu came naturally to him, and he felt that it was fitting to understand the seal he had. Finally, after years and years of hate and rejection, he had found the reason. He thanked his new friend a few times for telling him the truth, at which Shikamaru would get a funny look in his face before it returned to normal. He'd say it was the least he could do after Naruto had suffered through so much.

After reading a bit on storage seals, he heard his teacher in the background. Raising his head from the book, he turned towards Iruka.

"Naruto, are you alright?"

"Hmm, I'm fine Iruka-sensei. You don't need to worry about me."

"Everyone else left."

"Oh, they did." Iruka sighed. O_nly Naruto would completely ignore that class ended, _he thought. The boy scratched the back of his sheepishly in a show of his former attitude. His first year teaching the blond brought back memories that he wanted to forget, and he took out his anger on Naruto. But the boy grew on him, and seeing him as upset as he was recently made Iruka feel like he failed at being there to support Naruto.

"What happened to you Naruto?"

"Nothing."

"Will you tell me if I buy Ichiraku's?"

"If you let me try on your hitai-ate we have a deal..."

**End Flashback**

* * *

Naruto had told his friends that Iruka had talked some sense into him and helped him forgive the civillians. With a new dream that the kid wouldn't reveal to anyone, he perked up a bit and starting cracking jokes in front of the entire class again. Unknown to the others, Shikamaru breathed a sigh of releif. Once that day was over, Naruto trained so often it put Lee to shame. No one knew what his goal was, but with the effort he was putting in, the goal must have been worthwhile.

Now onto the topic of Chouji. The boy finally found it in himself to spar with his friends, but he'd never land the final hit. Whenever he was about to win, the Akimichi would stop mid punch and apoligize for almost hurting his friend. That was fine, as he still was able to practice his taijutsu a bit without giving anyone oversized bruises. Chouji was still slightly shy, and he understood he needed to work on being a bit more social, but it was never his style in the first place. _He'll eventually get back to normal,_ decided Shikamaru before he stopped pursing his friends socialness.

Ino was a tough case, and a very troublesome person to convince. She dieted like it was going out of style and constantly swooned over her 'Sasuke-kun.' When Shikamaru presented some facts to her. First, Sasuke wouldn't like girls that didn't train. Second, dieting was a terrible way to go, unhealthy and dumb for any shinobi. Training would help deal with the weight anyways. Third, she needed to live up to her family's expectations and not be a burden on their team, assuming they'd be together. When he said it all to her, it wasn't at once, and it wasn't that harsh, but it was sufficient to get the point across. Over the few days after that, Ino reevaluated her fangirlism and eventually dropped it mostly. She still wanted to date Sasuke, she just wasn't as open about it.

Unable to refrain from smirking at his accomplishments already, a content Shikamaru walked into the academy for the last time. He wasn't surprised to see Naruto was there though he wondered if he had graduated with the 'secondary test' this time or not. He assumed not, as Naruto had trained in chakra control a bit with him and should have been able to do a **bunshin. **Then again, you never know with people of that hair color. In the immortal words of Shikamaru, all blondes were 'troublesome blondes.' He took his usual seat next to Chouji, and Naruto came over and sat on te other side of the fun-sized Akimichi.

For once, the silence was potent, it could be cut with a knife.

"Whoa," Iruka muttered. "You're finally quiet the moment we're about to give out team assignments. WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE DONE THIS OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS IN MY CLASS!" A few students laughed under their breath while a good number of them gulped.

"Where's Mizuki-sensei?" Asked some random brown haired boy

"On vacation." While half the class groaned, Shikamaru had a knowing smirk. If interrogation with Ibiki was vaction, he'd hate to take time off of missions.

"Alright class, I'm going to read off the teams, and I expect no one to complain, alright?" With a few reluctant nods, he continued. "Team one is...(no one really cares)... Team seven will be Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha. Team eight will be Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuuga, and Shino Aburame. Team nine is already in use. Team ten will be Ino Yamanaka, Chouji Akimichi, and Shikamaru Nara."

There were a few groans made about the teams, much of it originating from a girl with pink hair. Everyone heard her cry "WHY DO I HAVE TO BE ON A TEAM WITH THAT BAKA." She paused to think. "At least I get Sasuke-kun, right Ino!" Sakura teased, poking her rival on the shoulder.

A few minutes later the sensei's came in. Shikamaru froze. _Asuma-sensei_... He had a cigarette in between his teeth and the lighter in his right hand. The same casual expression. The same hair. The same beard. Shikamaru couldn't look at his new yet former sensei. It brought so many conflicting emotions that he felt his head would explode. His sensei's death had unsettled him even more than his father's because of the time it took to settle in and how important Asuma was to the young Nara.

Shikamaru was snapped from his trance. "I'm Asuma Sarutobi, team ten's sensei. Meet me at training ground ten in twenty minutes."

* * *

**A/N Wow, got this chapter done much quicker than I thought. I had a busy weekend so I had to cram together a bit of free time to throw together the chapter. Unfortunately there's no fighting, but don't worry. Next chapter will begin a tough mission for team 10. ****I was going to make a cliffhanger just before Sasuke was picked for team 7, but I didn't think I could do that to you guys.**

**Ha, love raging women, they're the best to write.**

**If you were wondering, Mizuki decided to steal the scroll himself and was caught in the act by the Sandaime, so that part of cannon was taken care of.**

**Like that chakra control training where he could lay down in the water? To clarify that, he wasn't floating in the lake, rather supporting himself on the top of the water with chakra, so it basically was a stroke of pure genius...**

**Thanks for the amazing amount of reviews and support! I really appreciate all of the advice.**

**Until next time,**

**~Waffles**


	4. Chapter 4

**A Troublesome Chance**

**Disclaimer- Shikamaru's plans are all mine (evil laugh), but the characters and a good deal of the plot aren't...**

**Chapter 3- An Old Team and the Troublesome Missions...**

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Asuma's PoV

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"Alright team, let's start by introducing ourselves starting with our likes, dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future," Asuma grunted as he examined the team before him. In his opinion, they could be great, even surpassing the former Ino-Shika-Chou trio. He had heard from their fathers that over the last month they seemed to have taken training more seriously and started working on chakra control. Judging by their fathers, it would have been quite the chore to train them had they not takin it in their own interest. He would have had to motivate Shikamaru, persuade Chouji that sparring wouldn't hurt his friends, and keep Ino from dieting and fangirling. He still couldn't figure out why the Nara in his team looked at him a few times with disbelief on his face.

"Seeing as none of you know me, I'll go first," the former Guardian began. "My name's Asuma Sarutobi. I like smoking, shogi, and this village. Things I hate... those who judge their opponent quickly and traitors. Hobbies... Probably smoking, eating at that BBQ place down the road, Yakiniku Q, and playing shogi with my friends. As for dreams, I'll make you guys great shinobi to protect Konoha and the land of fire. I also want to play Shikamaru in shogi. You next, chubby." Chouji's face flushed red in embarrassment and the other two chuckled. Asuma grinned back, obviously not being serious and just poking fun.

"I'm Chouji Akimichi," he began slightly shyly. "I like food and Shikamaru. I dislike bullies and people who hurt my friends." He shared a look with Shikamaru, and they both had some type of understanding there. "My hobbies are eating and watching the clouds with Shika. Training or hanging out with them is alright too I guess. Uhh... My dreams... I want to make my father proud and keep my friends safe." Asuma nodded in understanding. It seemed as if Chouji had inherited the gentleness of his clan and could be strong enough to protect them with some prodding.

"You're turn, loud blonde."

"HEY I'M NOT THAT LOUD!"

"Suuuuuure," replied the sensei.

"Fine. I'm Ino Yamanaka. I like flowers and Sasuke-kun! I dislike Sakura, I mean Forehead. My hobbies are watching Sasuke-kun, being with my friends, and shopping. My dream used to be with Sasuke-kun, but now I want to be a top notch kunoichi better than Forehead." D_ammit, _thought Asuma, _I thought these guys would be easy. I just had to get a team with a fangirl didn't I? Granted she says she's not as bad as she was before, but at least their teamwork will be pretty good without taking too much work._

"Lastly, the slacker."

"Hmph, just because I didn't do the written test, it doesn't make me a slacker."

Ino didn't look convinced. "But you are a slacker."

"Troublesome," murmured the pineapple haired genin, giving the blond a tick on her forehead before she calmed down. Asuma sweat dropped as he realized his team will be a handful.

"My name is Shikamaru Nara. I like clouds, deer, strategy games like shogi, and my friends. I dislike anything that's too troublesome and those who don't seem to understand what peace actually means." He was sure that the boy had some odd undertone to the last few words. "I don't particularly like people who mess with my friends either. My hobbies are cloud watching, sleeping, and playing shogi. My dream is..." he thought for a moment. "My dream is to achieve the goals of someone I knew."

Asuma shot him a question look. "Hmm? What'd that be?"

"World peace. That way I could settle down in a less troublesome world with a nice wife and have two kids, a girl then a boy, retire when my son is a successful shinobi and my daughter is married, only to play shogi or Go for the rest of my life." He finished the last half with a tired yawn and proceeded to lay down on his back and stare at the sky.

"... Interesting." Asuma stared sideways at him but could make neither heads nor tails of the lazy boy with such an unheard of conviction. It was like he was bipolar, really. He seemed to just be a lazy slacker until it came to protecting things when he'd get determined and serious. What a group of intriguing characters.

"What do we do now?" Ino asked.

Everyone heard a loud rumbling. "Can we get some lunch?"

"Tell you what, Chouji," their teacher said, "if you guys fight me one on one so I can judge your skills, I'll take you to lunch. Normally we'd do a test for teamwork, but it'll probably be unnecessary seeing as your clans drilled that into you. What do you say we get this over with? Ino, you first."

Ino stood up from her sitting position along with Asuma as they moved away from the other two to the center of training ground 10. Chouji was watching intently from his sitting position while Shikamaru seemed to be asleep. Chouji nudged the lazy Nara, making him shoot up into a sitting position before complaining about not getting enough sleep.

With the shout of begin, the two launched into a one-sided taijutsu battle. Asuma was obviously playing with Ino, dodging every one of her sloppy attacks by mere inches. Ino went for a punch at his chest, and he slapped it aside.

"Defend," he commanded, turning her momentum against her. At relatively slow speeds for a jonin, he placed some quick attacks towards her upper body. She got hit in the right shoulder and again in the stomach, knocking her back five feet and landing her on back.

"Again." Ino reluctantly stood up and placed her hands in front of her.

**"Shintenshin no Jutsu," **(Mind body switch technique) she proclaimed as her body slumped forward.

"I win," said Asuma with an odd looking grin. A few seconds later Ino's body shook and she stood back up with a triumphant smirk. Shikamaru sighed. It was obvious that their sensei didn't mind getting caught in the jutsu to test her ability.

"Good job, though your taijutsu and strength could use a lot of work," the real Asuma complimented. Ino nodded. _She's quite competent at the clan technique. She should probably go ask her father about the next level._ "Chouji, you're next." Ino sat back down as the round boy stood up.

"Asuma-sensei, I don't want to fight." He looked at the ground in shame.

"Why not?"

"I don't think I could make myself hurt my friends. Sure, I've spared, but it doesn't mean I like doing it."

"You need to push yourself to get stronger to protect your friends. Come at me with everything you have or your friends are as good as dead." The boy's look of shame slowly morphed into determination.

"H-hai, Asuma-sensei. **Baika no Jutsu!" **(Multi-size technique) His body poofed into a big round circle with a head and four stubby arms. "**Nikudan Sensha!**" (Human bullet tank) He pulled his head and appendages into the circle and began spinning at impressive speeds.

The ball jumped forward at the jonin. Asuma clenched the cingarette tightly in his teeth as he raised his hands to block the boulder. With a slight screeting noice, the spinning Chouji was stopped mid-revolution.

"Chouji, you need to work on your rotation speed and strength."

"Alright Asuma-sensei. Good luck Shikamaru," he said as Shikamaru groaned and stood up.

The other two were interested in the fight. They knew Shikamaru had gotten strong, but neither could tell by how much.

"Are you ready, Shikamaru?"

"It's troublesome, but I guess I gotta do this." Asuma slipped into his taijutsu stance and began the match.

Shikamaru sat down and placed his hands in a large 'o'. Ino and Chouji knew immediately that Asuma would be in for a tougher match than he expected. _What's he doing?_ wondered their sensei. "Never be caught off guard," commanded their sensei, charging at the Nara heir.

His hands flew into the rat seal and multiple shadows extended towards Asuma, forcing him to hop back nonchalantly. "You interrupted my thinking, Asuma-sensei..." he groaned. "To borrow a phrase... 'Let's go wild.'" Asuma started jumping away as the shadows shot at him from the ground. Suddenly, the shadows stopped.

_They can only go 20 meters, huh? I can't let him get to the trees. As long as he is over twenty meters from the forest, I'm safe. It's a good thing he's in the center of a roughly hundred by sixty meter clearing._ "You'll need another trick up your sleeve to catch me." He made a few hand signs and called out "**Fuuton: Diatoppa**" (Wind release: Great breakthrough).

Just before the large gust of wind struck Shikamaru, his hands switched into the bird seal, and he used **Kage nui** (Shadow sewing) to send shadowy tendrils around his body, making a barrier. He was pushed back five feet as he held on. "Good use of your clan's technique."

"This match has hardly begun." Asuma replied to this by pulling out his chakra blades and activating his **Hien **(Flying swallow). Large blades of wind charged chakra surrounded them. Asuma had to figure out how to approach his student without being caught by **Kagemane.** Suddenly, a light bulb flashed in the jonin's head and he used **"Fūton: Fūjin no Jutsu!" **(Wind release: Dust cloud technique) After he blew smoke out and obscured the battlefield, he created two **Kage bunshin **to rush in and take out the supposedly incapacitated Shikamaru.

Shikamaru, meanwhile, was struggling to see through the dust cloud. Just barely, he could make out two copies of Asuma and ensnared them both with a shadow. Then, a blur appeared in front of him as the real Asuma appeared with a chakra blade pointed at his neck. The two other ones popped out of existence in a cloud of smoke. As the jonin ran at him, he reached in his pocket and threw a kunai with an explosive tag one foot in front of him, stopping his sensei from charging in.

The sound of the tag hissing put both opponents in a 'oh shit,' attitude before a large explosion knocked them both to opposite sides of the clearing.

Asuma could see Shikamaru all the way on the other side, struggling to stand up. The other two other members of the team were in awe with the level of fighting that the their friend was displaying. For him to be on par with a jonin...

"Clever use of explosive tags, Shikamaru. To think that you could predict that those two were **k****age bunshin **and use an explosive kunai as a deterrent. I'm proud, but I know you'll be running on empty soon. I'll finish this without having to use any dangerous jutsu." He once again rushed at his genin opponent.

"**Kage nui no jutsu."** Large tendrils of his shadow shot at Asuma, stopping him from moving forward.

"You're low on chakra... that was a reckless move," he mentioned as he dodged a few tendrils of the shadow at insane speeds, shifting slightly to his left. Asuma was unaware that he approaching the trees.

"It decided the match." Asuma was confused for a second, then he felt it. With a sudden realization, he noticed he couldn't move. "**Kagemane no jutsu**... success."

"But, how?"

"Look behind you," the genin advised lazily. Sure enough, as both of their head turned, Asuma saw a shadow extending from the back of his left foot all the way to the clump of trees on that side. _He pushed me to one side of the clearing with that kunai, forcing me within range of his sadow technique if he piggy-backed it off the trees. At the same time, he pushed himself back to allow him to use the trees behind him.__  
_

"You knew that my **bunshin **was a feint!"

"Yeah," he replied nonchalantly, "the first attack is almost always a feint. When I saw two, I knew for sure that it was a type of clone, so I waited for the third one, as one often hides behind the others, to make my move. Then, when you were dodging my shadow, I pushed you just within range of my **kagemane.** I don't have any more chakra, so I guess you win..." as he said the last part, the technique dropped and Asuma was free to move.

The three were just plain baffled at the genin before them, and each knew that he was chuunin level for sure.

Asuma couldn't be happier. "When we get your reserve's up, you three will be a force to be reckoned with. Ino, Chouji, I suggest that you both take your training as serious as Shikamaru and learn some more jutsu from your clan. Tomorrow we'll work on tree walking, but today I say I treat you all to some BBQ, ne?" Shikamaru fell backwards on the ground and started to take a much deserved nap. Asuma sighed at how the genius of the century could just sleep like that.

Chouji smiled. "Thanks Asuma-sensei." He nudged his frend up, much to the Nara's dismay.

"I'm going to play Shikamaru in shogi afterwards, no ifs, ands, or buts."

With that, the new team headed out for some food with a hungry Akimichi, confused Yamanaka, and tired as hell Nara.

**(A/N: holy fuck that fight scene was awesome to write. Hope you all liked the strategy as much as I did. BTW Shika isn't nearly as strong as Asuma. Asuma just didn't use his full speed or jutsu repertoire and wasn't trying to injure Shika in any way. Plus, he underestimated the Nara, which is an awful idea as proved by Hidan... Now, Ino and Chouji may seem weak to him, but seriously? That's beleivable considering how Shika has future high-rank techniques, larger chakra reserves now, and amazing strategy.)**

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Shikamaru's PoV

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The team had split to go their separate ways after the late lunch. Shikamaru decided to go on a walk with Chouji and talk about pointless things while Ino had taken it upon herself to help at the flower shop. Asuma promised that the next day, they'd test elemental affinities and practice chakra control. Shikamaru groaned while he walked as he got memories of two of the three **kage bunshin** who decided to not do any work for the day. At least the third one made up for it...

Shikamaru and Chouji were looking around to find their favorite blond, actually they didn't particularly like either any more than the other. On one hand, he was demanding, talkative, and sometimes loud while Naruto was dense, idiotic, and sometimes too wise for his own good. Those times were limited. In short, they meant Naruto, seeing as Shikamaru needed to know if they had still cooperated and passed the test. Then again, he doubted that Kakashi would fail a team with the last Uchiha, a daughter of a civilian councilman, and his sensei's son. Still, its nice to worry about one's friends sometimes.

While he was worried about that, he was more concerned over Asuma revealing too much to Shikaku. Sure, Shikamaru had gotten lucky when he trapped his sensei, and he also knew the mans tactics like the back of his hand. Not only that, Asuma didn't want to use wide area-of-effect jutsu or any high-ranked jutsu. It had even caused a good amount of burns on his left arm to get a leg up on his sensei. Still, he father wouldn't see it like that. He'd know just how impressive it is for a genin to officially beat a jonin, especially one as strong as Asuma, even if they weren't going all out. He didn't want the recognition yet.

Nonetheless, Shikamaru decided what will happen, will happen, ironically. From Naruto's recent changes in personality, he knew that even small changes could cause something big, so he just had to let it happen and not worry significantly over the outcome. Yet.

He abandoned the odd realm of his thoughts when he saw the spiky-haired blond boy eating a large bowl of miso ramen at Ichiraku's. "Hey, Naruto!" He greeted.

He was met by a grin and the boy turned around, leaving Shikamaru to gape, resembling a fish. "Whats wrong?"

Chouji answered for the dumbstruck Nara. "You're not wearing your orange jumpsuit..."

"Oh ya! Kakashi-sensei told me I needed a better outfit for survival training tomorrow. I have to say, I like this better." Shikamaru nearly punched himself for causing the one change he'd never even have thought about. In what world does Naruto wear black warm up pants, a navy blue and black ANBU shirt, ANBU gloves, and the only orange being an Uzumaki swirl on the back. IN WHAT WORLD? The Nara was groaning for not seeing this coming, especially with his friend's new calmness and fuuinjutsu intrests.

"So you're test is tomorrow?" Shikamaru pointed out, trying to be as stotic as possible with this foreign Naruto. In a few moments after he said that, he'd overcome his irrational fear.

"Ya! I'll pass it for sure, 'ttebayo!" So the kid hadn't lost that... good. _Oh man, what if Naruto doesn't stay a fool, never meets Jiraiya, then is captured by Nagato, and the second chance was worthless? That's so troublesome. _

"Asuma-sensei told us we passed already," Chouji commented offhand.

"Didn't you guys do survival training?"

Shikamaru answered both of their questions. "The evaluation is basically a test of teamwork. There are a variety of tests to do, the most common of them pitting members of the team against each other to see if they can overcome the rules and complete the task together. However, my team, considering how our clans are famous for working together, probably wouldn't have needed to go through that troublesome training, so we just did skill evaluations."

"I kind of get it?" Naruto said with a questioning tone at the end before grinning stupidly... again. "I bet you got your asses kicked by your sensei! He's Jiji's son!"

Chouji answered. "Shikamaru almost beat him."

"Really!?" Naruto exclaimed in awe of his friend who he knew was strong. Strong enough to beat Sasuke-teme.

"Meeh, it was a bunch of factors other than me. He underestimated me, didn't use his stronger jutsu, didn't try enough, and didn't want to hurt me... So I basically won on a fluke."

"Come on Shika," sighed Chouji, "you may be modest, but don't sell yourself short."

"Ohhhh, how troublesome!"

"What?" The two friends asked.

"I'm late. My mother's going to KILL me." They both laughed, having unfortunately met his mother before.

"Well, bye then Shika and Naruto, I'll go home also."

"Bye, guys," Naruto said.

"Good luck, Naruto," Shikamaru stated. Chouji echoed him before they parted separate ways.

* * *

A Week Later

* * *

Training ground ten was permanently occupied by four people since the students had graduated the academy. Their sensei had persuaded them into bringing take-out from their favorite BBQ place to snack on while they did chakra control. Asuma couldn't help but feel glad about his student's achievements already.

They had tested out their teamwork the second day and found out that they'd be even better than the previous generation. After all, it's everyone's destiny to surpass their fathers. This was how the team worked in the sensei's opinion.

Shikamaru was the planner. He'd take charge and get team ten to follow a single plan with a few back up possibilities. He would never initiate the spars, knowing that the opponent would give away information in the way they make the first move. The thing was, the boy had unbelievable patience, and could just stop himself from moving for hours while remaining attentive. That was a side effect of laziness.

Chouji was the brawn. When their enemy was pinned down, Chouji would take them out. If the other two were having trouble trapping the enemy, Asuma, in their techniques, the Akimichi would use his clan jutsu to force their sensei into Shika's trap. He was also incredibly kind and forgiving, which can always be a positive trait if used at the right times.

Ino was the one who kept them in line. She would force them to do work when neither wanted to and often wound up having to finish their spars with her mind technique before the other two left to do other things. Asuma also had the belief that she'd make a good medic from her precise chakra control and relatively small reserves.

All in all, their team was rounded perfectly, no offense Chouji, and could take on a variety of missions. Still, Asuma couldn't help but smirk at them doing 'troublesome' D-ranks.

"Oi, Asuma-sensei," Shikamaru interrupted his thoughts. "Aren't we going to check our affinities today? You promised us, and you know upset Chouji would get if you didn't follow up."

Their sensei chuckled. "Of course, Shikamaru. Ino, could you grab some of the chakra paper from my bag? Yes, that, and make sure not channel any chakra through them yet." Ino handed the papers and sat down with the other two genin, uncharacteristically quiet.

She was tired of her and Chouji being forced to work day in and day out on clan techniques and chakra control. At least, for the two of them, the clan stuff was easier with the chakra control, and they were now able to do a good few more useful jutsu.

"Alright, my little genin. We are going to test your affinities today." He held up one of the sheets and channeled chakra through it. The students watched as it split in two instantly and each side burst on fire. "That means that mine are katon and fuuton. You're turn Shika."

The cloud-boy grabbed a sheet and it immediately disintegrated. He sighed, doton still...

After prodding from their teacher, Chouji grabbed a paper and his too turned to dirt.

Ino's paper shocked everyone. Like their teacher, she had two affinities, suiton and raiton.

"Hmm, interesting affinities everyone. And you're in luck, as I know someone with knowledge of them all. He is, as you may know, a teacher of this years genin."

Ino groaned. "Please tell us it isn't Kakashi-sensei. He's later than Shikamaru, and he's lazier too!"

"Sorry, kiddos, you're out of luck. If you guys don't want to bother him I can just get some scrolls. My father's library would have something." They all nodded furiously, making Asuma wonder why their students disliked Kakashi so much. He chose to pursue the topic another day, but he never did find out it was because of Naruto.

The blond jinchuuriki had told them all about Kakashi's unexcused lateness, lack of teaching, and porn reading habits.

So they left to get some scrolls and began to work on learning C-rank jutsu for the next three weeks.

* * *

Weeks Later- Shika PoV

* * *

Asuma-sensei was much more involved with their training than before. He reasoned it was because of him, as Shikamaru had tried to tame their different personality quirks. He had even taken to being slightly on time and only sleeping during training for an hour. His clones had every right to do his work anyways, not that his team knew. When he had shown Asuma the laying-on-water chakra control exercise, the jonin was floored.

"This is the best invention since shogi!" He exclaimed, promptly trying to lay on the water. Soon, the whole team was doing it, and boy did it do wonders for their control.

When they had enough to learn basic elemental jutsu, Asuma had given them each a scroll on a jutsu to benefit them specifically. Ino got one for both suiton and raiton.

Shikamaru eventually figured out how to turn a leaf to dirt in a simple training exercise, allowing him to learn the D-rank **Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu** (Earth release: Double suicide decapitation technique) where he dragged enemies into the ground. It would be useful, but he had to get to the higher level, landscape altering techniques to incorporate his shadows.

Chouji was a natural at the element and quickly learned the **Doton: Doryūheki **(Earth release: Earth-style wall) and the **Doton: Kengan no Jutsu** (Earth release: Rist rock technique) both of which went seamlessly with the multi-size jutsus.

Ino learned **Suiton: Mizurappa** (Water release: Wild water wave) and **Raiton: Jibashi** (Lightning release: Electromagnetic murder) though she couldn't form seals fast enough to use a shocking collaboration jutsu. She also had low amounts of chakra, so the force of those techniques was relatively low.**  
**

All in all, Shika beleived they were ready for a C-Rank mission.

Asuma agreed. When they went into the mission office after capturing Tora for the fifth time, the former Shinobi Guardian said "Tou-san, my team is ready for a C-Rank."

The Hokage, an old man with a pipe protruding slightly, made no attempt to have confidence in his son. "Are you positive?"

"Hai, they have impeccable teamwork and each know an elemental jutsu if they get in a bind. I doubt they'd need much more than their clan jutsu on a C-Rank however." Shikamaru agreed with his sensei's statement.

"Hmm, I guess I can give you an escort mission we just got in today. Can you please escort the client in?" An assistant nodded before running out the door and returning a few seconds later.

The man, old man, they were supposed to escort had a grey beard, small glasses, and a bottle of saké sloshing around in his hands as he tried to stay upright. He wore a dark grey, sleeveless v-neck with a towel slung across his neck. "This is my protection? A fatty, cute girl, bored kid, and their sensei?"

"Ah, yes," Hiruzen chuckled under his breath. "Tazuna, meet team ten, they will be escorting you to your home in the Land of Waves." Shikamaru couldn't decide whether to think o_h shit! _or _how troublesome._

* * *

**A/N- Dun, dun, dun... Team ten now has the infamous wave mission. Will Shikamaru be able to keep up Naruto's legacy and protect the Wave? Will he be able to do better and save two mercenaries from the wrong path? Who knows? (well I do)**

**Anyways, that concludes chapter three. Team ten is going to be strong this time, and so will team seven when we see them again.**

**Just warning you, team seven won't join up on the wave mission, so sorry those of you who want Naruto action. There will be plenty of that in both the Chuunin exams and the Invasion arcs.**

**Naruto will be stronger and smarter as well. By the invasion, he'll have decent skills in fuuinjutsu, and I hope to have him on the path to learning the hiraishin. Amazing what a few friends could do for the kid, ne?**

**Thanks for the support and reviews! Also, tell me if you want me to keep updating team ten's ninja stats. Here's an example of what I'd do**

**Shikamaru Nara**

**Rank: Genin**

**Taijutsu: 2**

**Ninjutsu: 4**

**Genjutsu: 2.5 (he does not often use genjutsu)**

**Intelligence: 5**

**Strength: 2**

**Stamina: 2.5**

**Hand seals: 3**

**Total: 21**

**Borderline B-Rank (closer to C)**

**Notes: Shikamaru is extremely adept with the Nara clan's signature shadow ninjutsu. He had amazing intelligence, average taijutsu skills, and enough speed in hand seals to avoid close combat. It is nearly impossible to expect a win if he has time to prepare and his opponent is B-Rank or worse.**

**Ps- I'm taking suggestions for a new Nara jutsu that Shikamaru can learn. You can also throw some ideas in for a Yamanaka jutsu, but Ino won't use it if its too advanced until shippuden.**

**Also, sorry I didn't include a Tora scene. If you want it, mention it in a review if it's not too troublesome.**

**Until next time folks,**

**~Waffles**


	5. Chapter 5

**A Troublesome Chance**

**A/N- Maaaaan, I was so busy the past few days that I have no idea where I found the time. Maybe it was the hour during Physics where I chose to jot down some ideas?**

**Regardless, I still have to throw in a disclaimer and talk about last chapter a bit...**

**Last chapter was by far the best to write, but I was surprised no one commented on the fight scene. I have to know if you guys like the style because there will be A LOT of fighting as the story goes on. I mean, it is the wave mission and chuunin exams these next few chapters... I'd hate for you all to be pained while reading through the prelims and finals. And when the Akatsuki gets into action.**

**Still accepting Nara jutsus. Heard an interesting suggestion involving Chouji and bo staffs the other day, and I might consider him trying the weapon at some point...****  
**

**Pairings are decided. They will NOT be an important part of the story.**

**Disclaimer Oh man, those clouds are so lucky... so free... More to the point, they don't have to write disclaimers like I do... I STILL DON'T OWN NARUTO **(Shika quotes XD)

**Chapter 4- A Dangerous, I mean Troublesome, Mission to the Land of Waves!**

* * *

Tazuna was a stuck up old man. It took Shikamaru only seconds to learn that fact after he declared the kids a bunch of 'worthless barts.' While Ino attempted to refrain from smacking him upside the head, thankfully Asuma stopped her, the Nara just sighed and gave Chouji a sideways look that they both knew.

'This is going to be troublesome...' The big boned Akimichi smirked back before munching loudly on some chips.

"Well," Asuma grunted, puffing a small cloud of smoke, "you did pay for a C-Rank..."

Tazuna paled slightly before regaining his composure asquickly as it left. "Fine, I'm a super bridge builder and I demand super protection! Alright little brats?" The druken man staggered a bit as he said the last part before running off. "Meet me at the gate at 8am!" He glared at the genin one last time, turning around and walking off.

Asuma chuckled. "Hmm, you better go tell your parents you've got a C-Rank and will be gone for a few weeks. I know how fun that'll be, right Shikamaru?"

"Oh Kami, please don't let her be angry. That'd be trou-" Ino smacked him on the back of the head before he could finish the sentence.

"SHIKAMARU!" She threatened.

"I-I didn't say anything."

The blond smiled. "Good. Now go tell your kind, loving mother where your lazy ass is going to be tomorrow."

No one caught the 'troublesome' under his breath as he headed back to his house to explain to his parents what was going on.

* * *

At the end of the meeting, he went straight home to notify his parents about the trip. During the usual quick dinner, with both of the guys trying to get away as fast as possible, Shikamaru brought up the C-Rank mission and told them he'd be gone for a while.

"It's already time for a C-Rank?" Yoshino asked curiously. Her son had only been a genin for little over a month, so how was he already going on potentially dangerous missions? "But there are nuke-nins out there, and bandits, and Iwa, and bad people, and even-"

"Oh come off it Yoshino-chan, Shika will be fine. Right?" Shikaku interrupted the worried mother and looked across the table t his son.

"Ya, I'll be alright. We always have Asuma-sensei to count on if things go bad."

"But he's only one man!"

Shikaku took a breath. "Calm down. He guarded the fire Daimyo, so how is this any harder? They wont have any missing-nin after them. Its just a C-Rank." The Nara heir rested his head on the table in annoyance.

"Tou-san. Kaa-san. I'll be fine."

His mother looked at him expectantly. "You'd better be fine. If I find out that you got severely injured during your little mission, we are going to have a long long talk." The boy looked at her wide-eyed with horror. _I may be from the future, but she still scares me half to death. If i didn't know the future, I'd say that troublesome women would kill me before Obito has the chance._

He was thanking Kami that his mother had only done that.

After the dinner, he had packed, slept, and left to meet his team at the gate.

* * *

The next day they met up to head out, and each of the genin had a small backpack for their stuff. Asuma suggested that they bring extra kunai, shuriken, water, snacks (Chouji assumed sacks were to take up the most of his space), food pills, and a small blanket for sleeping on the ground. Knowing exactly how much of what to pack, Shikamaru had the lightest bad, though a good reason was how much effort it would take if the bag was heavier. He loved being lazy.

"Everyone ready?" the bearded sensei asked.

"I got enough chips," replied Chouji.

Ino poked him. "You shouldn't eat so much!"

"Troublesome... Let's go."

With a usual sigh at the signature Nara saying, they all walked out the gate with their client. Just before they left, Tazuna had donned a straw hat that looked like a traffic cone, not that any of them knew what that was.

As they walked through the forest surrounding Konoha, Asuma saw kids look beyond bored. He needed to do something to occupy them...

"Hey, Tazuna, why do you need escorts to the Wave?"

The old man paled a bit, raising Asuma's suspicions. "Uh, well the country is in a bad financial state, and I'm worried that there could be bandits."

Ino used this to start a conversation. "Ya, what's the Wave Country like?"

"As I said, we aren't in the best state, there are poor people all over the place. Not a lot of stores still do good buisness, and many people fear bandits or pickpockets." Shikamaru narrowed his eyes. "Not a lot of people go out of their homes these days... But that's enough about me. How are kids so young actually shinobi."

Ino bristled at the comment, and the three boys seemed like they didn't care at all. Asuma explained the ranking system to the poor man and how teams were assigned certain missioned based on their skill level. Shikamaru sensed some suspicion from his sensei. He knew what happened, team seven fought Zabuza and an accomplice as well as the Demon Brothers and saved the Wave. Beyond that, he didn't know anything.

As he walked alongside his team, his hands formed an 'O' in his traditional thinking pose. _The Wave is an Island, and Tazuna here is a bridge builder. Someone who has control over shipment too and from the country doesn't want any interference. If there was one man who had the money, power, and influence to completely monopolize shipment, it had to be Gato of Gato Companies, the famed shipping magnate. Yeah, that man's going to be troublesome if he wants to keep us from protecting our ojective._

Thinking further about the situation, Shikamaru hardly notice as his foot splashed in a puddle. Asuman saw it too. _What an obvious way to hide yourselves... To think chuunin are so careless back in the past..._

Their sensei nodded to Shikamaru, who knew immediately what he would do. After all, he played shogi with the man more times than either could count.

Forcing himself not to look at the hidden missing-nin, the Nara continued walking. Suddenly, two figures rose from the water behind them, and before they could turn around, the figures shot chains at the group. Asuma got wrapped up head to toe.

"One down," Meizu said, yanking on the chain. The former Shinobi guardian was sliced into small pieces. Ino and Chouji gasped. Shikamaru knew what his sensei did.

"ASUMA-SENSEI!" They all shouted.

"Four to go," finished Gouzu. The brothers were wearing Kiri forehead protectors, Meizu's with two horns and Gouzu's with one. Meizu wore a camo suit, while his older brother had a black cloak, both had a spiky gauntlet on one of their hands.

"Looks like we get a bunch of kids, eh brother?"

"You said it."

Shikamaru took charge. "Formation B everyone!" (Notes: 1) Chouji moved to stand in front of Tazuna while the others flanked him.

**"Baika no Jutsu!"** His body expanded until he was three times the size, becoming slightly skinnier in the process.

With huge fists, he sent a crushing smash at each of the demon brothers. The ground shook, but they each effectively dodged to the side. Gouzu and Meizu ran around Chouji before he could turn around.

Shikamaru made the rat seal, then bird and used **Kage nui** to shoot shadowy tendrils at Meizu. The former Kiri nin jumped back as the shadows slammed into the ground before him, then he readied his chain for a counter attack.

Meanwhile, Ino formed the hand seals for **Suiton: Mizurappa** (Water release: Wild water wave) and spewed out a torrent of water. Though her reserves were small, she thought she could keep the chuunin dodging until Chouji or Shikamaru trapped him. Gouzu dived to the left just before he was smashed by water and eyed Tazuna hungrily.

Chouji saw Ino miss and thought he could use this opportunity to catch the demon brother. He shot a fist at the man and grabbed him by the waist. Gouzu, who wasn't paying attention to the Akimichi after he ran around, was caught by suprise and let out a scream of "Shit!"

Meizu jumped away from Shikamaru at the enlarged Chouji to free his brother. Chouji swung a clumsy, oversized arm to swat him out of the air, but the chuunin grabbed onto it and used it as a platform to jump directly at his brother. Chouji twisted to the side, pulling away the captured missing-nin, but Meizu held out his gauntlet and scratched Chouji's shoulder as the large genin spun away.

Meizu landed on the ground, ready for another attack when he realized e couldn't move.

**"Kagemane no jutsu**... success." Shikamaru had the same smirk on that he normally has when he outwits his opponents.

Chouji placed the other demon brother to the side of the shadow, allowing him to be ensnared the in the jutsu as well. Afterwards, Chouji shruk back down to normal size. The Akimichi was hungry, he never used that jutsu without a good breakfast. It would always give him even more ravenous hunger.

"You bastard!" declared Meizu.

"You'll pay for this!" his brother added.

Shikamaru looked towards the trees. "Asuma-sensei, you can come out now." Ino's face morphed into a look of surprise when she saw their sensei walk out of the trees, unharmed. While the Nara already picked up on the true meaning of their sensei's disappearance, the other three were a bit more confused.

Then with an "ohhh," the genin saw the log on the ground that was sliced into pieces where Asuma was just before.

The two glowered at the former Shinobi Guardian. "When we escape, you're so dead!" Somehow, they said this simultaneously. Asuma just glowered right back before lazily walking onto the shadow and standing in front of both of them.

"So, why are you after the bridge builder?" Asked Asuma.

"We won't tell you," they shot back.

"Who hired you?"

Meizu struggled against the jutsu, trying to punch the man in the head. "We aren't ratting anyone out, so just go to hell!"

"What a shame." With that, he knocked them in the head with both of his fists, causing them to crumple to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Shikamaru cancelled his jutsu, breathing slightly harder than before.

Their sensei looked back at the bridge builder, who was watching most of this with a guilty, yet frightened expression. The man immediately tried to put on a stotic face when he saw three other pairs of eyes turn towards him.

"Asuma-sensei," interrupted Ino, "why didn't you help us fight them?"

"Ya," added Chouji, who now had a bag of chips in hand. Everyone heard munching as the smoker pulled out a cigarette and lighted it.

With a puff of smoke, he answered, "well, I needed to see who they were after. Me or the bridge builder, considering that there wouldn't be a reason to attack fresh genin. When they continued to try to break past your defense, I got my answer. I also wanted to test you guys to see how you handle a situation without direct instructions of guidance. Of course, you did great, but in the case where you were in more danger I would have stepped in."

Shikamaru sighed. "You know, I could have figured it out, and we wouldn't have needed such a troublesome fight."

"Where's the fun in that?" shot back their superior. The Nara groaned and laid down on the ground. "Anyways, Tazuna-san, you've got some explaining to do. This mission is clearly a B-rank, maybe a borderline A-rank if there are more shinobi after you."

The old man let out a defeated "alright, I'll tell you the truth." He paused as Asuma nodded for him to continue. "Gato, of Gato Shipping, doesn't want me to build the bridge. You see, he wants to have full control of the trading in and out of the Wave, but my bridge is going to stand in the way. He has been terrorizing our village for many years, and now most people live in fear."

The jonin understood that much, but... "This is clearly an A-rank mission, why didn't you pay for one?"

"Our contry doesn't have enough money to pay for that."

"Sorry, kids," Asuma said, "looks like we should head back. You may have good teamwork and individual strength, but A-ranks aren't missions for fresh genin to mess around with. Maybe if you had more experience..."

"But, Asuma-sensei!" Chouji exclaimed, "they need our help."

"Yeah," Tazuna said. "If you go back then I'd have to go all the way to the village on my own. When I die, my daughter will cry her eyes out then be taken by Gato's thugs. She'd be raped, cursing Konoha for abandoning the mission. My grandson would have to get up each morning knowing that you could have saved me and the rest of the Wave, but I guess you can just go."

Ino and Chouji felt terrible for the old man, while Asuma just wondered if he thought that sympathy would persuade his team to put their lives on the line. Shikamaru knew that abandoning the mission would be a bad idea, and he also believed they could take Zabuza and the other person on and win. _Asuma sensei is an S-ranked shinobi. Even if he isn't the same level as the Akatsuki, he can hold his own against Zabuza. The three of us can take care of his apprentice. I'm back in the past to make a difference, not take the easy way out like before._

"I think we shouldn't get involved in this. We can go back and ask for them to send a jonin team, and you can pay them back later."

"No," Shikamaru said forcefully, suprising his teammates, "we will not abandon people in need. Everyone deserves to have peace, whether it be from bandits or other nations. I won't let us go back and watch them suffer because we aren't the best team for the job. If that was the case, then I shouldn't have gotten up yesterday morning. If we_ can_ do something to help, we should. Also, missing-nin are expensive so Gato can only employ so many of them, right?" Tazuna gave the Nara, who was still laying on the ground, a grateful look.

Asuma beamed at his student for standing up for what is right. _He truly has the Will of Fire_, he thought. "I guess you kids are going to force me to continue?"

All three of them nodded.

"Then lets go!"

* * *

**A/N: Whoohoo another chapter is up. I decided to post this one separate from the fight with Zabuza. Why? because its been a while since I updated and I don't like to make people wait too much. Besides, its not like this chapter is super short, just short... I might just add onto this instead of going for a whole new chapter for the Zabuza fight... Hmm, throw me ideas on that on whether you want it in this chapter or next.**

**Also, sorry bout how quick the fight scene with the Demon Brothers was. If I knew more about their fighting style or jutsu, I could have made it longer, but the Ino-Shika-Chou trio makes short work of most easy fights...**

**I was planning on finishing it last night, but a troublesome movie got in the way and I just had to watch all three hours. It was probably one of the most bizzare things I've watched that left you confused for 75% of it. Cloud Atlas. I swear, just watch it and tell me I'm wrong.**

**After the Wave Arc, I'll add a bit on Naruto's progression. This story may be Shika-centric, but Naruto is still the most important character for most of the series.**

**Apart from that, I need to add a note here:**

(Note 1) Formation B is a team formation that I came up with for the new Ino-Shika-Chou. Instead of explaining it in the middle of a fight, I'll describe it down here. Anyways, the formation is Chouji in the front and the other two back, about 3 meters away, in a triangle (with who they're protecting in the middle). With Chouji's use of the expansion jutsu, they have an effective wall to stop direct attacks. Shikamaru uses his shadows to keep the attackers funneled in front of a giant Couji, while Ino uses suiton jutsu if they get too close to her side. In the event that they draw away Couji, Shikamaru will hold off the enemy until they can trap them on all three sides and use combination attacks. In that case, they have to inch forward away from who they are protecting.


	6. Chapter 6

**A Troublesome Chance**

**A/N: Here is the much awaited fight against Zabuza! Thanks for staying loyal everyone, and I'm looking forward to see how this chapter goes over. I have officially decided on Shika's pairing, but that won't be relevant for many chapters. Besides, this is not a romance story. The pairing will be a minor element, which is why you all got to chose!**

**Chapter 5- The Assassin of the Hidden Mist**

* * *

"Hey, Asuma-sensei, isn't this fog a little thick?" Ino made this comment offhand while trying to not get agitated by the constant swinging of the boat.

After the encounter with the Demon Brothers, who now were tied up where they fought, everyone was on edge. Especially Shikamaru, as he knew that ex-Kiri nin Zabuza Momochi was coming, and very soon judging by the mist. He knew what happened, but as to why and how to change it, he couldn't be sure. Logic. Logic would be his weapon to solve this mission and make everything turn out better. A-ranks were not something to rush into unprepared. They were no team 7, decked out with the best two welders of the famous sharingan and a jinchuuriki who would be able to use Kyuubi's chakra in a pinch. No, they were an ordinary, skilled, coordinated genin team far over their heads.

Shikamaru unconsciously put his hands together in his thinking pose, deep in contemplation. I_ need a leg up on Zabuza, so I need to know why he fights. Motivation is the key, one can win a fight without enough skill if they have the determination. Naruto proves this. Aside, what drove this man to take on bounty missions? He attempted an assassination of the Yondaime Mizukage, feld, and became a mercenary. Why does he need the money? He can survive plenty well on his own without making such a splash in world events._

Then, it suddenly made sense. The Kiri rebellion and kekkei genkai wars, or course! He was simply raising money for the resistance, possibly. The former member of the seven swordsmen clearly had a vendetta against Yagura, and the resistance was currently a year away from winning, so he must have been trying to pay for the final attack in Kiri.

So, he had a valid hypothesis on why Zabuza was on this missio, but how could this help him? He needed to solve this, and quick.

"Kid," the boat owner replied, "the mist around here can get really thick, it's nothing to worry about."

Chouji paused his hushed eating to whisper, "so this is natural then?"

"No," Asuma replied, "this fog is slightly laced with chakra. Be on your toes."

The boat owner, Tazuna's friend, and the bridge builder himself paled visibly at the sign of another shinobi. "Shh!" The old man forcefully whispered. "Stay quiet so I can get home without dying."

"Yeah," added Kaji, the middle-aged boat owner, "we can't let Gato hear or see this boat approach the Wave."

After a few minutes of hushed silence broken only by the splash of a paddle in the calm water, the team arrived on dry land. Ino breathed a sigh of releif, thinking they were mostly safe from any further assaults. It was a populated area and not that large of an island, right?

The five, in a formation around Tazuna, crept through the forested path unusually slowly. For the most part, they kept silent, waiting for the inevitable to happen.

A bush rustled. Before anyone could warn the others, a kunai had fled from Shikamaru's hand directly at the disturbance.

Hearing a thunk on a tree, the five wandered near a lake to see what he hit.

"Oh, its just a white rabbit," Chouji pointed out, seeing the rabbit pinned on the tree by its foot. "I'm going to let you down, little guy, okay?" He smiled as he pulled the kunai out and wrapped the leg quickly in a spare set of wrap.

The two geniuses paused for a second, looking at Chouji and the bunny. Wait,_ a white rabbit in the middle of summer? There's only one reason..._

"GET DOWN!" Commanded Asuma as he heard whirring in the distance.

The genin heeded his words and dived for cover, but Chouji, in the process of taking care of the bunny, was too slow. Then, the Akimichi felt his body forced down with a familiar jutsu and nodded gratefully to Shikamaru.

The whirring sound stopped as a tree shuddered with a huge thunk. An enourmous blade with a hole in it impaled the tree halfway, making the genin thankful that it didn't come close to them. Tazuna almost passed out himself from realizing that he almost died.

In a blur, a figure stood atop the blade, facing away from team 10. The man turned around. He was wearing no shirt, a long piece of cloth hanging low from his headband. He wore the Mizu plate to the side of his short and spiky black hair.

"Momochi Zabuza," said Asuma, narrowing his eyes at his soon-to-be opponent. "Demon of Kirigakure, wielder of the executioner's blade **(A/N: sorry guys, I'm not continually spelling/pasting the sword's long ass name)** famed for slaughtering his entire graduating class. A low S-ranked missing-nin wanted for an attemted assassination of the Yondaime Mizuakage, and a master of the silent killing."

"Well, well," replied the demon in a deep voice. "I'm honored, Sarutobi Asuma, that you know so much about me. You yourself are a former member of the Twelve Shinobi Guardians and the son of the Sandaime Hokage. Why don't you hand over the bridge builder, it would be a shame to kill you and the little brats."

Asuma skidded in front of his genin, Zabuza jumping down from the tree. The genin formed a three man ring around Tazuna, their sensei protecting them in the front.

"You will not get the chance to harm my students or my client."

The ex-Kiri nin hefted his huge sword in front of him, ready for a fight. "I bet these students of yours haven't even killed another human being yet. They aren't worthy to wear those headbands." Shikamaru shuddered internally in remembrance of some of his more gruesome missions.

"They are worthy in my eyes. Either way, your fight is with me." The man spat his cigarette on the ground and pulled two black chakra blades from his pockets. With a blue glow, the blades became wrapped in blue chakra, also extending their edge for a foot.

"The **H****ien** already? I'm honored. What do you say we see who's blade is sharper!"

He declared the second part as he short at the genin with speeds nearly impossible considering his sword. Asuma swung at the blurred nuke-nin, striking a huge blade. A huge clang of steel on chakra rang out through the clearing. Asuma tried to cut the man's arm with his other blade, only to find air.

Zabuza spun, scraping up dust with his feet, then swinging his blade from over his shoulder in a downward arc. The sensei jumped to the side just in time to avoid it. Their fight raged on, Asuma trying to block the blade as it swung at him from every direction. Seeing one swing that was particularly slow, he only used one of his chakra blades to block. He had the freedowm to swing his free hien at his opponent, but Zabuza skidded to the side just in time to avoid a stab to the shoulder.

Asuma saw the man unbalance and launched another attack with both of his blades. Zabuza parried the man's swing, catching both of the makeshift swords on the executioner's blade, then forced Asuma onto the defense with sheer strength.

Shikamaru saw the missing-nin pushing against his sensei's two blades, and quickly used the **kagemane **(shadow imitation) with the intention to trap Zabuza.

Zabuza was forced to hop back, muttering with a smirk "well, well, a Nara. Maybe this slaughter will be fun after all." He followed this declaration by jumping back onto a lake, putting his hands in a split ram seal, left hand just above his head. **"Kirigakure no jutsu," **(hiding in the mist technique) he said in a quiet, but easily heard voice.

Team ten watched as mist swirled up from the lake and condensed around the Kiri jonin, dread filling the air. In mere, seconds, no one could see and the clearing was obscured by thick fog.

"I'll handle him," said Asuma, "just protect Tazuna-san!" The genin pressed even closer around the client. _Ohh maaan, this isn't good. I can't see Chouji or Ino, and Asuma will never be able to keep track of Zabuza. Why couldn't we have Kakashi as a sensei? _Shikamaru knew that their team was one of the least capable for this mission. There was a reason the man had a rank of 'S.' Tazuna was shaking already, and there wasn't even killing intent yet.

From all around the Konoha nin, a booming demonic laughter permeated the air. "Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular, subclavian artery, kidney's, heart. All of these are an instant kill, but maybe I should make your deaths more painful." Zabuza's voice was dark, bloodthirsty, and the amount of killing intent he was releasing was monsterous.

The genin were shaking, Shikamaru even shuddered a bit at the massive feeling of helplessness and death. Chouji looked like he was going to fall over, and Ino was inches away from grabbing a kunai and stabbing herself in the leg. "Don't worry, Ino, Chouji, I'll protect anyone from my team with my life!"

That seemed to snap them out of it, regaining their senses and standing resolute. "Now, who should I kill first?" Zabuza questioned with an evil tone.

Suddenly, a huge blade swept by Chouji's head, going straight towards the bridge builder. Asuma barely caught on in time, hearing the sound and seeing a slight blur of color, and threw a wind-enhanced chakra blade just over the bridge builder's shoulder.

With a clang, Zabuza's sword was deflected just in time.

"I am you're opponent, Zabuza," stated Asuma, secret worried that his genin might become involved. Worried over the two non-Naras especially.

"I'll deal with you first then, came the voice from near Chouji. The Akimichi was ready to use his clan justu if the man got any closer, while the other two were prepared to back him up.

The mist cleared up, slightly, as Zabuza jumped onto the water of the lake, causing a few ripples. Asuma stood on land in front of the ex-Kiri shinobi. Simultaneously, the two began forming handsigns.

**"Fūton: Atsugai!" **(Wind release: Pressure damage)

**"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!" **(Water release: Great waterfall technique)

A huge spiraling tornado-like gust of wind collided with a giant torrent of water, blowing small particles of water over their surroundings. Amidst the chaos caused by the two high ranked jutsu's, Asume ran onto the water in an attempt to take out Zabuza. He pulled his last chakra blade, one was laying on the ground near Chouji, and stabbed it through Zabuza.

The demon of the mist smirked before bursting into water.

"Asuma-sensei!" Ino screamed.

"Behind you!" Shouted the Akimichi

Zabuza's executioner's blade stabbed through Asuma. The jonin sensei's eyes widened, then he disappeared in puff of smoke.

**"Kage bunshin..."** (shadow clone) Zabuza commented, "I should have known." He felt cold steel on his neck courtesy of the jonin.

"It's over, Zabuza." Once again, he burst into water, making all the members of Asuma's teem gasp in shock, even Tazuna who couldn't follow the fight at all. _He made two mizu bunshin _(water clones) _from the start, _realized Shikamaru.

**"Suirō no Jutsu." **(Water prison technique) Asuma was incased in the jutsu by Zabuza who was standing right behind him. "Now to deal with these pesky genin." A mizu bunshin formed and stood in front of their drowning sensei.

Shikamaru was angry. He was never angry. _It's just like with Hidan and Kakuzu. He's testing us! Asuma is endagered and he's testing us! _Then he remembered his goals and logic and tried to calm down. _Stop, you can still save him. This man isn't immortal, he has many weaknesses. One of them is underestimating me!_

"Ino. Chouji. Take care of Tazuna-san, I'll free sensei." The Nara stepped forward, a rare determined look on his face. He needed to make this mission go right, to prove he could change the future. And for the better.

"B-but Shikamaru!" Exclaimed his best friend.

"We're a team," finished Ino, standing beside her smart friend.

"We are, but there are some things I have to do alone. A true shinobi would risk their lives to keep their teammate safe. Interfere only if I'm in trouble." _He has a plan,_ the other two knew the look in Shikamaru's eyes when he could seemingly foretell the future. Logic and reasoning were formidable tools. "Zabuza Momochi, this ends here!"

The mizu bunshin charged at Shikamaru, who formed the rat seal. Shadows chased the clone across the water, the fake Zabuza avoiding the small strands as he slowly made his way to land. Now, he was about ten meters from the water, time for Shikamaru to make his move.

"You're not that good brat, if that's your only jutsu," taunted the man as he dodged the shadows, slowly gaining ground. Shikamaru suppressed his anger at that same phrase that everyone always used. He _will _make Zabuza regret saying that.

"Hardly." He formed a kage bunshin, surprising the nuke-nin. The bunshin went through hand seals before sinking underground while the original reformed is shadows to keep Zabuza at bay.

**"Kage nui no jutsu!" **(shadow sewing technique) His hands quickly formed the bird seal and strands of shadows shot at Zabuza's clone from in front of the ground. Zabuza was to busy dodging the tendrils, which struck the earth with enough power to create large holes, to notice where exactly the disappeared clone went.

The older shinobi felt a hand on his wrist. **"Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu!"** (Earth release: Double suicide decapitation technique) Zabuza was pulled into the ground and his clone disappated into a puddle of water.

"Well, well you managed to beat my clone, even if it was at 10% power." Then, he froze. WHAT? He couldn't move. The shadows didn't extend onto the water so... how?

**"Kagemane Shuriken no Jutsu **(shadow imitation shuriken technique)... success." At the real Zabuza's feet lay Asuma's chakra blade, floating on top of the water with a small amount of chakra applied to it.

His plan had worked. Using the fight with the clone as a distraction, his shadow had picked up the chakra blade and handed it to the original Shikamaru. He then applied chakra to it and threw it at Zabuza's feet with a shadow. Now, the man was paralyzed.

Shikamaru ran onto the water, trying to reach the man before his small reserves finally ran out. The ex-Kiri nin could only gape in astonishment at how skilled the genin was at water walking before he received a punch to the stomach. Though it wasn't the most powerful, it did the job, sending him skidding across the water back to land. Asuma landed on the water face first, released from the prison jutsu.

"This is the end, Zabuza," stated the jonin as he began hand seals.

"Kid, can you see the future?" He asked this to the Nara, impressed by his analytical skills.

**"Fūton: Daitoppa!" **(Wind release: Great breakthrough) A huge gust of wind slammed into Zabuza, crushing him on a tree before he could dodge.

"Yes, and I see your death," commented Shikamaru, thinking it was the right thing to say. He would have spared the man anyways to gain intel on Gato and find a use for the swordsman.

Out of the trees, three senbon streaked through the air, impaling Zabuza in the neck. "It appears your prediction was correct." The newcomer wore a Kiri hunter-nin mask, with the four squiggles in red on the top and the rest white. He wore a white-trimmed, green haori, sandals, and dull green shirts the same color as his outfit. His hair was black, a little lower than shoulder length.

"I've been hunting this man for some time. Thank you Konoha-nin for taking him down. Now I must take the body and destroy any secrets it may hold." He slung the now passed-out form of Zabuza over his shoulders and disappeared without a trace.

Shikamaru gaped at the situation. He didn't remember this! He goes through all the effort and Zabuza was killed anyway! _What about his apprentice... Shit. That feminine boy was his apprentice, of course. Why didn't I pay more attention to Naruto's ramblings? That boy's appearance caught me unaware and introduced a variable I hadn't considered. How troublesome... I do remember Naruto fighting him twice though, and with the injuries Asuma-sensei gave him, and the near death-like state he was put in with the senbon, he should be ready for another round in a week. Maybe I'll reveal my new jutsu then._

While Shikamaru was irritated with himself for messing up and taking too long to realize the man was an 'enemy', the other four were proud of their performance.

"Good job, my promising genin. Chouji and Ino did a great job of being ready to provde back-up should it have been needed. And you kept Tazuna safe. Thanks Shikamaru for saving my ass there, at least it was easier to outsmart Zabuza than me, ne? The hunter-nin may have claimed the glory, but you all did perfect. All in all, great fight, I'm just feeling a little woozy from all that chak-"

And their sensei fainted.

The three genin sweatdropped.

"Well," sighed Tazuna, "looks like I'm safe for another day. Thanks you guys for your super protection, and I can honestly say I'm warming up to you. Why don't I carry the jonin the rest of the way? It's only another half hour to the village," without waiting for an answer, he grabbed Asuma and threw him onto his back with good strength for a civilian.

The genin picked up the tools they used, and Shikamaru almost passed out from chakra exhaustion as well. Fortunately, the group managed to stuble to the wave.

Like Tazuna had said on the boat ride over, the wave was a desolate place. People begged on the streets, houses were slightly caved in, and the tell-tale thugs were walking around town no doubt on Gato's orders. It seemed that the open-air markets were low on food, and all the citizens wore slightly tattered and torn clothing.

They made their way to one of the nicer houses in a secluded area of the village by the docks and entered it.

"Tsunami, I'm home!" Declared the bridge builder happily.

"Tazuna!" A woman replied happily, rushing to the door. Tsunami wore a pink blouse and some other normal civilian attire. She had sleek black hair that seemed to shine in the light, an overall pretty woman.

"Yup, it's me! These Konoha-nin did a super job with keeping me safe!"

Chouji looked up from his chip munching. "Thanks, Tazuna-san!"

"What happened to him?" She gestured at the Sarutobi over Tazuna's shoulders.

"We got in a fight and he stopped the attacker. Now hes just tired, or so these kids claim."

Tsunami smiled. "Thank you for keeping my father safe. I'll make some dinner in an hour, but we need to find a spare bed for your sensei first." The kids nodded, mostly just to tried to complain. With a small conversation about new team formations, they settled down in Asuma's temporary room with the passed out man and just talked over his bedside.

The Nara could recall Naruto mentioning training after some kid's outbreak, then meeting Zabuza's accomplice. Shikamaru patiently awaited his time to see this man, and he would think of ways to bring them to Konoha until then.

He regarded his sleeping sensei. _Sometimes I have to wonder if there was a reason I'm back in time. Sometimes I wonder if I need to tell someone I trust to help bear my burden... Sometimes I wish that this were all a genjutsu, and I didn't have to do anything any more. _He internally smirked at his laziness.

_The future is determined by choices we make in the present. I'm going to make the biggest possible ripple to cause the biggest possible way. Beware future, because I'm going to change everything._

* * *

**A/N: And there's chapter 5. Did you like the 2k word fight scene? It took me a good while to get it all sorted out. I wanted it to have some cannon aspects that people could connect to, but I also wanted it to be unique and interesting.**

**As a side note, Zabuza is not quite as weak as I made him appear. It is true that Kakashi was his worst nightmare, so that may put him in a weaker light after watching/reading cannon. Zabuza's attacks are strength based. He uses strong ninjutsu and kenjutsu without too much finesse, and with Kakashi's sharingan predicting those attacks, countering and dodging is much easier. I believe Zabuza to be low S-rank, like I said, but this fight was also a test for him, so I made him weaker. After all, the seven swordsmen of the mist are nothing to scoff at, so next battle we will see his full potential!**

**Shikamaru's justu will make its reveal next chapter. It's an A-rank clan jutsu, maybe even a high A-rank, but it takes a boatload of chakra. That basically makes it his finishing move.**

**One final question- do you want me to put Naruto's PoV in a version of this story? It will be how Naruto changes and adapts to his life now that Shikamaru told him the truth. If I do it, it will go to the Chuunin exams.**

**Anyways, review and fav/follow! I'll answer most questions and fix most errors that you guys bring up!**

**Stay troublesome,**

**~Waffles**


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